Guide · NCISM regulations 2024
NCISM MSR 2024: what your hospital software must do
The NCISM regulations of 1 May 2024 make a Hospital Information Management System (HIMS) compulsory for every undergraduate Ayurveda college, and tie the college’s rating to the data it submits online. This guide lists each HIMS-related requirement with its regulation number, followed by a checklist you can use with any software vendor.
1. Which regulation is this?
The full name is the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (Minimum Essential Standards, Assessment and Rating for Undergraduate Ayurveda Colleges and Attached Teaching Hospitals) Regulations, 2024, notified on 1 May 2024 (F. No. BOA/2-C/2024). Colleges often still call it the “MSR” or “MESAR”.
It repealed the Indian Medicine Central Council (Requirements of Minimum Standard for under-graduate Ayurveda Colleges and attached Hospitals) Regulations, 2016, and applies to undergraduate Ayurveda colleges and their attached teaching hospitals.
2. HIMS and real-time data
- Reg. 8(2)Every institute shall be equipped with a Learning Management System and a Hospital Information Management System as specified by the Commission.
- Reg. 8(3)Broadband internet of at least 500 Mbps.
- Reg. 8(5)The IT cell shall connect the LMS, the HIMS and the biometric attendance system with the Commission’s command and control centre for real-time transfer of data.
The regulation does not yet publish a data format for this real-time link. Ask your vendor how they will connect once NCISM specifies it.
3. Registration, ABHA and NAMASTE
- Reg. 39(4)A computerised central registration system, linked for real-time data transfer to the Commission’s central server.
- Reg. 39(5)The registration platform or HIMS shall be compatible with ABHA, the Health Professional Registry, the Health Facility Registry and the Unique Health Identification Number.
- Reg. 39(6)Patients shall be authenticated through ABHA (Ayushman Bharat Health Account).
- Reg. 39(7)If the Commission recommends a HIMS, migrating to it is mandatory.
- Reg. 39(8)The HIMS shall be aligned with the NAMASTE portal (National Ayush Morbidity and Standardised Terminologies Electronic) developed by CCRAS.
- Reg. 39(9)–(10)A fully computerised hospital does not need physical medical records; a small record room for important documents is enough. A hospital that is not fully computerised must keep physical records and a medical record technician.
4. OPD: screening, tokens and patient numbers
- Reg. 40Every screening counter gets a computer linked with the HIMS, and OPD consultation runs on a token system.
- Reg. 40(17)Online consultation through teleconsultation platforms, with specialist timings shown on the platform and the college website.
Regulation 42 sets the minimum average OPD attendance per day, at a student to patient ratio of 1:2. The year is counted as 300 days.
| Student intake per year | Minimum average OPD patients per day |
|---|---|
| 60 | 120 |
| 100 | 200 |
| 150 | 300 |
| 200 | 400 |
5. IPD: beds, occupancy and the midnight rule
Regulation 44(8) asks for one bed per student of annual intake and 60% bed occupancy, measured as the average number of in-patients per day over the last calendar year (365 days).
| Student intake per year | Minimum beds | Minimum average in-patients per day |
|---|---|---|
| 60 | 60 | 36 |
| 100 | 100 | 60 |
| 150 | 150 | 90 |
| 200 | 200 | 120 |
The midnight rule, Reg. 44(9). A bed occupied by a patient at midnight counts as one bed-day. A patient discharged before midnight, or admitted for day care, counts as half (0.5) a bed-day.
Bed occupancy (%) = bed-days occupied × 100 ÷ (number of beds × number of days)
Your HIMS should record the admission and discharge time and mark day-care admissions, so that this figure comes straight from the data rather than from a register filled in by hand.
6. Pharmacy, store and Panchakarma
- Reg. 41(1)The drug store and dispensary shall be computerised.
- Reg. 41(2)A hospital formulary approved by the drug purchase committee, which meets at least once every three months.
- Reg. 47The Panchakarma reception counter should preferably be computerised with the HIMS, and show the day-wise schedule of therapies, appointments and the therapists on duty.
- Reg. 49(6)The hospital store shall be computerised and aligned with the HIMS.
7. Monthly upload, rating and penalties
- Reg. 55(2), 56(10)Every college uploads its data (self-disclosure) on the Commission’s online platform on or before the 10th of every month, for the preceding month.
- Reg. 55(6)The assessment period is the twelve months before the month of the visit.
- Reg. 56(9)In the rating, online data carries 70% of the weight and physical verification 30%.
- Reg. 71Falsified or fabricated data is non-compliance. The penalties include a monetary penalty of up to ₹1 crore and a warning, among other measures.
Because most of the rating now rests on data you upload every month, the numbers in your HIMS must be complete and consistent: OPD attendance, admissions, bed-days, procedures and pharmacy.
8. Checklist for your HIMS
Use these questions in a demo with any vendor, including us.
| Ask the vendor | Regulation |
|---|---|
| Can reception create and verify ABHA, and register a patient with ABHA? | 39(5), 39(6) |
| Is the software ABDM integrated? Ask for its listing on abdm.gov.in. | 39(5) |
| How does diagnosis coding align with NAMASTE terminology? | 39(8) |
| Does every screening counter work on the HIMS, with OPD tokens? | 40 |
| Does the system show the average OPD attendance per day against your intake? | 42 |
| Are admission and discharge times recorded, and is day care marked? | 44(9) |
| Does the bed occupancy report follow the midnight rule? | 44(9) |
| Are the pharmacy, dispensary and main store computerised in the same system? | 41(1), 49(6) |
| Can the Panchakarma counter see the day’s schedule and therapists? | 47 |
| Can the monthly figures be pulled out in time for the upload on the 10th? | 55(2), 56(10) |
| How will the software connect to the NCISM command and control centre when the format is published? | 8(5), 39(4) |
Questions, answered
Is HIMS mandatory for Ayurveda colleges under the NCISM 2024 regulations?+
Yes. Regulation 8(2) says every institute shall be equipped with a Learning Management System and a Hospital Information Management System as specified by the Commission.
Must patients be registered with ABHA?+
Regulation 39(6) says the authentication of patients shall be made through the Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA), and 39(5) asks for a registration system compatible with ABHA, the Health Professional Registry and the Health Facility Registry.
How is bed occupancy counted?+
A bed occupied at midnight counts as one bed-day. A patient discharged before midnight, or admitted for day care, counts as half a bed-day (regulation 44(9)). Bed occupancy = bed-days occupied × 100 ÷ (beds × days).
When must a college upload its data to NCISM?+
On or before the 10th of every month, for the data of the preceding month (regulations 55(2) and 56(10)).
How much does online data count in the rating?+
Online data submitted by the institution carries 70% of the weight and physical verification 30% (regulation 56(9)).
Does NCISM prescribe a particular HIMS?+
Regulation 39(7) says that if the Commission recommends a Hospital Information Management System, migrating to it is mandatory. Check the NCISM website for any current recommendation.
This guide summarises the regulations published in the Gazette of India on 1 May 2024 and is not legal advice. Read the official notification and any later amendments on the NCISM website before you act on it.