No radiologist, cancer patients referred to Faridkot

Ravi Chandel

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, December 10

Patients visiting Advanced Cancer Institute situated on the Bathinda-Mansa road are a harried lot these days as the institute doesn’t have a radiologist for the past two months.

Besides, the institute also doesn’t have X-ray films due to which the digital X-ray machine is lying defunct.

Former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had inaugurated the institute amid much fanfare in July 2016 to provide cancer treatment at nominal rates.

Patients said on a number of occasions, the hospital authorities referred them to the Faridkot medical college in the absence of a radiologist.

Harvinder Singh, a patient, said, “I have come from Talwandi Sabo to get an MRI test done. But the authorities concerned have referred me to the Faridkot medical college.”

Kulwinder Singh, another patient, said, “It is strange to know that X-ray films of the digital X-ray machine are not available due to which a number of patients have returned empty-ended.”

A hospital employee, who did not wish to be quoted, said, “Radiotherapists have been performing the duties of a radiologist for the past two months.”

The radiologist from the Faridkot medical college, who visits the hospital every Tuesday, is also not visiting on a regular basis.

“At times, the computer system linked with the diagnostic machines doesn’t work and there is also no IT executive at the institute to deal with snags,” the employee added.

Institute director MK Mahajan said, “Though we are trying our best to provide all facilities to patients with inadequate manpower, we refer serious patients to the Faridkot medical college in the absence of a radiologist.”

He said they had recently recruited two radiographers to resume the functioning of CT scan, MRI, ultrasound and X-ray machines.

“I was not aware that the X-ray films were not available. I will immediately direct the officers concerned to arrange the films for the digital machine,” he added.

On IT-related issues, he said, “We have asked the Hospital Service Consultancy Corporation (HSCC) to fix the problem or provide us an IT executive for the same.”