Govt. yet to install MRI facilities at all hospitals, reveals RTI reply

Govt. yet to install MRI facilities at all hospitals, reveals RTI reply

Only 11 of 46 govt. headquarters hospitals got the equipment in the last 3 years

19/10/2020

Cause for concern: Patients have to travel 50 km-100 km for a scan due to the absence of MRI facilities. 

Special Correspondent Madurai

In January 2017, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court, on a writ petition filed by activist C Anand Raj, had directed the State government to establish MRI facilities at all government headquarters hospitals.

However, the activist, recently, through the Right To Information (RTI) Act, found out from the Tamil Nadu Medical Services Corporation (TNMSC) Limited, that the government was yet to implement the court directive completely.

Only 11 of the 46 government headquarters hospitals in the State have been provided with MRI facilities in the last three years, for which the government spent ₹56 crore.

The activist said the information furnished by TNMSC showed that patients, who had taken scans at the MRI and CT facilities, paid ₹264 crore over the last nine years. All GHs collected charges ranging from ₹500 to ₹1,000 for CT scans and ₹2,500 to ₹3,500 each for MRIs. Only those whose annual income was less than ₹72,000 were covered under the Chief Minister’s Health Insurance Scheme.

Call for attention

Mr. Raj has, since, urged the government to provide MRI facilities at least in Usilampatti (Madurai district), Kovilpatti (Thoothukudi), Karaikudi (Sivaganga), Tenkasi (Tenkasi), Srivilliputtur (Virudhunagar), Periakulam (Theni) and Padmanabhapuram (Kanniyakumari district) hospitals before this fiscal year.

The doctors/radiologists in these hospitals said that patients had to travel at least 50 km to 100 km, every time, for a scan, due to the absence of MRI facilities. With the government repeatedly telling people not to venture out during the pandemic, critical patients have had to travel long distances due to poor infrastructure, Mr. Raj said.

According to him, though CT scan facilities are available at all hospitals, they do not function 24x7, at many locations, forcing patients to travel to other cities or look for private scan centres. He said the government was deliberately aiding private scan centres by not providing the facilities at government headquarters hospitals, as directed by the court.

When The Hindu contacted a senior official at the Directorate of Medical and Rural Health Services, he acknowledged that there was a delay in installation of equipment. However, he said the government could not simply install the facilities and leave them there. “We have to recruit people for the facility, fix their pay scale, train them to handle the devices, and so on. It will take time. Today, the government’s priority is to fight COVID-19. All the left-out GHs will get MRI facilities in the next 18 months,” he said.