Bir Hospital CT Scan Services Halted for a Month Due to Machine Malfunction

Kathmandu. Services have been shut down for a month after both CT scan machines at Bir Hospital broke down. Patients are forced to go to the Trauma Center and private hospitals due to the disruption of CT scan services, which are considered important for disease diagnosis.

According to the hospital, one machine is irreparable, while the other, though functional, has been out of order for a month.

About 70 people used to get CT scans daily at Bir Hospital. While CT scans here cost between two thousand five hundred and six thousand rupees, patients are now forced to pay between five thousand and sixteen thousand rupees at private hospitals. With the service shut down, patients requiring CT scans are compelled to go to other health institutions including the Trauma Center, Shukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital.

At the Trauma Center, CT scan services have resumed after the repair of the broken CT scan machine. Dr. Rudra Marasini, Director of the Trauma Center, stated that the number of patients has increased due to the service shutdown at Bir Hospital.

He said, 'Previously, about 50 people used to come for CT scans daily. Now, more than a hundred patients come for service. We have a 16-slice CT scan machine, which is already 10 years old. As it breaks down intermittently, a new 128-slice CT scan machine is in the procurement process, which has reached the final stage.'

According to radiologists, CT scans are necessary for the identification of serious diseases and detailed study of various organs of the body. According to radiologist Dr. Bikram Bikram Adhikari, CT scans are used for further confirmation if there is doubt in the results obtained from ultrasound or X-ray.

He said, 'CT scan is necessary for accurate diagnosis of diseases. It is an important test to find out which organ of the body has a problem.'

Dr. Prakash Budhathoki, spokesperson for Bir Hospital, said that the service will resume within the next week.

He said, 'The annual maintenance contract for one of the two CT scan machines expired in Poush. The supplier has been called for contract renewal. The contract is expected to be completed within four to five days, and services will resume.'

Prabha Koirala Chapagain, acting director of the hospital, informed that an important part of the multifunctional CT scan machine is broken.

She said, 'The machine broke down about a month ago. It took time because the necessary part had to be specially ordered and brought. The part has been ordered. We expect it to arrive soon and services to resume.'