Standards set for paramedics

People aspiring to be paramedics will now need to have hands on training for better job prospects. Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday released the National Occupational Standards for Allied Health and Paramedics which makes such training a must in the course module for healthcare skills sector.

The standards, ready for 15 out of 27 identified services, have been prepared by the Healthcare Sector Skill Council (HSSC) after a market survey and negotiations with various stakeholders, including government and private hospitals, small nursing homes and laboratories. The standards are not mandatory, but set the benchmark for good practices. This means that for the job of ward boy, technician or laboratory assistant, it will not be enough to have theoretical knowledge, but also practical training to provide better service to patients. 

"The standards are benchmark for best practices in the sector. So far we have had educational qualification as criteria for recruitment in skills sector. Now the criteria will be a performance-based," said Sanjay Chhabra, director of HSSC.

The health minister, while lauding the effort, said, that the government attaches high priority to skill development, aimed at creating productive employment. 

The standards are likely to gain more importance once the National Skills Development Corporation (NSDC) includes it as mandatory criteria while giving grants to training institutes. NSDC is a public-private partnership working as the nodal funding agency for skills sector in India.