DMCH's chronic equipment malfunction

PATIENTS getting admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) for serious ailments are confronted with the prospect of no treatment since much of the crucial medical equipment like CT scan and MRI machines are dysfunctional. The situation is inexplicable since much of the equipment in question has been out of order for as long as ten months. What it means is that patients must go to get their tests done in private diagnosis centres that charge heavily on tests that should have been readily available at DMCH but are not.

This is hardly the first time we have covered the issue of broken down equipment at DMCH, but it appears peoples' lives and wellbeing are not being prioritised. Hence patients with serious ailments like brain haemorrhage and skull fractures are left to fend for themselves to get the requisite tests done elsewhere, which it may be stated, could very well be beyond their financial means. And it is not merely about financial capacity. What happens when a patient arrives with a critical injury to the hospital and precisely how doctors are to ascertain whether that person needs surgery or not without a CT scan is beyond our comprehension.

One cannot rule out the prospect that such critical machinery is kept offline deliberately so that private clinics can make windfall profits at the expense of patients. Or perhaps the lengthy procurement procedures of public institutions render such equipment inoperable. Whatever may be the case, it remains imperative that crucial medical equipment is kept operational for smooth delivery of patient services. The hospital's authorities must take immediate steps to remedy such deplorable negligence.