Colour-coded roads at Kolkata Medical College Hospital to guide patients

KOLKATA: The undergraduate students of Kolkata Medical College Hospital have come up with a colour scheme to make life less miserable for patients and their harried family members. They have started coding all stretches leading to major departments in different colours. Arrows of different colours are being painted on the roads on the hospital campus to help patients and their kin find their way easily.


Various departments at the 1,800-bedded hospital - like the blood bank, central laboratory, pathology lab, microbiology facility - are located in different buildings scattered across the campus. Often, the absence of signage makes life difficult for patients and their family members. "We often come across patients or their relatives wandering around, searching for departments they need to go. So we came up with the idea and help them by using colour codes. It will guide them to right places," said Priti Goswami, a third-year MBBS student.

Fours colours - red, green, yellow and white - are being used to draw arrows and stripes leading to different departments. For example, red colour will be used to point towards the central laboratory, pathology, microbiology and biochemistry departments. A red arrow every 12 metres with the names of the departments written in between will guide the patients to the right place.

"There are six gates to the hospital. The colour coding will start from each of these gates, with the guiding arrows in different colours ending at relevant departments. We believe this will be of help to patients," said Sayantan Mukhuti, an MBBS final-year student and a member of the Medical College Democratic Students' Association.

On Thursday evening, the students got busy with their mission right after the OPD crowd left the hospital premises for the day. Armed with paint and brushes, they worked late into the night giving shape to their innovative idea. Colourful paint was used to draw arrows, which will guide patients and their kin to the blood bank, the USG facility, the main OPD building, the chest, orthopaedic and ENT OPD, the haematology clinic, cardiology department etc. The office of the medical superintendent, who is also the vice-principal, too, has been marked - in white - as relatives of patients need to approach him regularly with various grievances.