WARANGAL/JANGAON: State-run MGM Hospital in Warangal and Jangaon District Government Hospital have been turning away hundreds of patients seeking Covid-19 diagnosis, as their CT scan machines are damaged or under repair. CT scanning is one of the primary ways to ascertain the extent of infection in the lungs. Consequently, patients are forced to approach private diagnostic centers that charge up to Rs 2,000 to Rs 2,500 for a CT scan.
The Jangaon District Government Hospital is a 100-bed Covid-19 facility, whose CT scan machine has been out of order since 2020. Doctors are now using X-ray machines to detect the presence of virus in the lungs, though it does not provide information on how much of the lung is affected.
At the diagnostic lab in MGM Hospital, the staff are able to scan only seven to 10 patients with Covid emergencies every day, at present. They said that with the spike in cases, a lot of people had sought CT scans to check the extent of lung infection, and that the machine had been working 24X7 to meet the demand. “Due to continuous operation, the scanning machine needs fixes. As a result, the scanning process is getting delayed,” the staff said.
It may be recalled that Panchayat Raj Minister Errabelli Dayakar Rao had frequently inspected the MGM and Jangaon Government Hospitals. He had conducted review meetings with the district administration and Government Hospital officials on Covid treatment too. The Minister had claimed that the State government was providing requisite infrastructure and upgraded pieces of machinery to ensure necessary care for patients. But in reality, patients are still being forced to approach the private diagnostic centers for these facilities.
When Express contacted Jangaon District Government Hospital superintendent Dr Pujari Raghu, he admitted that the CT scan machine needed repairs. “A report has been submitted seeking funds for the repair of the machine. The higher officials have assured to look into the matter,” he said.