Chandigarh, Oct 26 Haryana has introduced UPI-based digital payments at 610 public healthcare institutions across the state and expanded facilities that allow patients to complete OPD registration from home before visiting hospitals.
The patient-friendly initiative will help reduce long queues and ease registration at government hospitals, officials said.
Additional Chief Secretary, Health and Family Welfare, Sumita Misra, said the initiative would make hospital visits more convenient by simplifying registration, reducing waiting time at payment counters and providing digital alternatives to conventional procedures.
The department, however, has made clear that conventional walk-in registration and cash payment facilities will remain available at government hospitals.
Patients who do not use smartphones or digital payment apps will not be excluded.
The digital payment system has been made operational across all 23 district civil hospitals, 52 civil and sub-civil hospitals, 121 community health centres, and 414 primary health centres in Haryana.
Patients can now use UPI to pay applicable charges for outpatient department (OPD) registration, inpatient department (IPD) registration, medico-legal cases and other healthcare services.
According to an official statement, the facility has also been extended to civil surgeon offices in all 23 districts.
The department has also strengthened the facility for OPD pre-registration from home at 23 district civil hospitals, 31 civil and sub-civil hospitals and other healthcare centres connected with the e-Upchar Hospital Management Information System.
Patients can complete their OPD registration before reaching the hospital, reducing time spent at conventional registration counters. Those booking appointments online must visit the hospital on their scheduled date and time.
Dedicated pre-registration counters have been established at hospitals. Scan and Pay facilities have been introduced to make fee payments quicker and more convenient. The department has introduced Scan and Register facilities at 118 healthcare institutions operating under the e-Hospital system, including centres up to the primary health centre level.
Misra said the introduction of UPI payments and online registration facilities was an important step towards making healthcare services more accessible, transparent and patient-friendly.
She said the digital systems would provide citizens with “secure, transparent, and convenient digital services” and simplify and streamline hospital registration.
The statewide initiative was introduced after a successful trial at the District Civil Hospital, Panipat, where the digital payment system was tested before extending to other districts.
A state-level workshop was subsequently organised on October 13 where Civil Surgeons and Deputy Civil Surgeons were instructed to implement UPI-based payment facilities by October 16. The department said the system became operational across all 23 districts within the stipulated period.
(PTI News)
