KARAIKAL: An MRI scan centre will be set up at the Karaikal General Hospital, at a cost of Rs 9 crore. The facility is expected to be opened to patients by the end of this year. Regional Medical Officer Dr R Parthibavijayan said,
"The machine, which alone costs Rs 8 crore, will be installed within three months." Operating and maintaining the MRI Scan machine requires technical expertise.
Officials said that trained technicians would be posted. Patients were usually directed to Vinayaka Mission Medical College hospital and the Nagapattinam government general hospital for MRI scan as it was unavailable in the Karaikal General Hospital.
The hospital, set up in 1908, currently has equipment such as X-Ray, Ultrasound and Computed Tomography (CT). The PWD has already carried out infrastructure works required for the scan centre at the cost of around Rs 3 lakh.
As the MRI scan machine consumes enormous amounts of power to operate, electrification needs to be done by setting up a separate power pillar. Karaikal South MLA, AMH Nazim believes that the MRI scan centre would be operational latest by December.
He met the hospital's Medical Superintendent Dr S Kannagi on Wednesday and stressed the same. Nazim said, "A national highway passes through the district, making Karaikal prone to accidents. Thus, MRI scan is a necessary service required at the local hospital. A critical care unit planned at the hospital should also be set up soon."