National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) assessment

01.07.2024

National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) assessment

Why in the news?                        

Recently, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare launched the National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) assessment, Dashboard for IPHS and Spot Food Licence Initiative to provide “Healthcare for All” and promote wellness.

About National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) assessment:

• It has been launched for Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (AAM) and Integrated Public Health Laboratories (IPHL) in compliance with IPHS standards.
• IPHS is a digital platform for real-time monitoring of public health facilities that provides a comprehensive overview of the assessment and compliance status of public health facilities.

What is the Spot Food License Initiative?

• It is for the instant issuance of licenses and registrations through the pan-India IT platform designed to address all food safety regulatory needs i.e Food Safety and Compliance System (FoSCoS).
• This new provision supplements the existing procedures for applying and obtaining licenses and registrations as prescribed under the Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulation, 2011.

○Instant issuance of licenses without the intervention of a licensing authority will be available for select categories such as wholesalers, distributors, retailers, transporters, storage without atmospheric control + cold, importers, food vending agencies, direct sellers and merchant-exporters.

• This scheme will not apply to businesses involved in high-risk food categories like milk, meat and fish.

What are Ayushman Arogya Mandirs?

• These have been established and operationalized to provide comprehensive, accessible healthcare services for all citizens.
• These are led by Community Health Officers, the primary healthcare teams at AAM are trained to manage initial care, triage, and refer patients to appropriate facilities for further treatment.
• This approach reduces the burden on secondary and tertiary care facilities by providing primary care services closer to the community with adequate referral linkages.
• The early identification and management of health issues help prevent disease progression, necessitating advanced care.

                                                                Source: PIB

Ques :- Consider the following statements with reference to the National Quality Assurance Standards (NQAS) assessment:

Statement-I

It is an initiative of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Statement-II

 It has been launched to assess the quality of the organic vegetables.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

A.Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, and Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I.

B.Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, and Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I.

C.Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect.

D.Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct.

Answer C