Chandigarh, April 14:Despite PGIMER introducing an online registration system nearly a decade ago, only two departments—Advanced Eye Centre (AEC) and Hepatology—currently offer priority consultations to follow-up patients through digital booking, leaving the majority of patients across other departments to endure long queues and confusion.
The AEC and Hepatology departments are the only ones to have implemented systems that allocate specific dates and times for follow-up consultations, allowing smoother patient flow and significantly cutting wait times. This selective adoption stands in contrast to the daily crowd of 8,000 to 10,000 patients at the institute’s OPDs, particularly during peak hours between 8 am and 11 am.
“At the Eye Centre, about 1,400 patients visit the OPD daily, with around 450 being first-time visitors,” said Dr S.S. Pandav, head of the ophthalmology department. “We assign time slots for follow-up patients based on available slots, which has helped in managing the patient load effectively.”
In 2022, the AEC digitized its patient record system, enabling seamless follow-up scheduling. Inspired by this model, the Hepatology department introduced a similar online system in January 2025. From January 10 to March 24, the department recorded 782 online bookings for follow-up liver clinic consultations, all handled on a priority basis.
However, patients seeking care from other departments are still required to complete their registration in person. PGIMER’s 2015 online registration facility only acts as a pre-registration step—patients must still collect their OPD cards from a designated counter, and no digital appointment with a specific consultant or unit is available.
The institute had announced an upgrade from its current Hospital Information System (HIS) 1.0 to HIS 2.0 back in 2022. The new system was expected to facilitate full digitization, including electronic medical records and mobile-based appointment management. But officials confirmed there has been no notable progress.
“The app, too, depends on HIS 2.0. Until that transition happens, we can’t expect a fully integrated online system,” said a PGIMER official, requesting anonymity.
Patients and their families continue to face the brunt of this delay, with digital convenience restricted to only two departments. Calls for a campus-wide roll-out of online appointments are growing, especially as PGIMER remains one of North India’s busiest tertiary care institutes.
