Sardarpur (Madhya Pradesh): Scores of patients here in the Community Health Centre (CHC) of Sardarpur Tehsil in Dhar district have to face the brunt of faulty X-Ray machines, thanks to the non-functioning of its timer.
The X-ray machine at the community health center has been lying non-functional for the last 15 days, causing inconvenience to patients. Routine patients are forced to go to private centers. The glitch is a nightmare for the accident victims who have to linger on for X-ray services outside the center.
As per data available with the center, about 40 to 50 patients seek X-ray facilities every day and the computerised X-ray machinery, purchased recently by the CHC, was intended to provide better results in less time.
Notably, X-Ray of orthopedic patients is done free of cost here in community health centers, while in the private centres, it costs between Rs 400 and 500, which is beyond their reach.
It is worth mentioning that Sardarpur tehsil being is a tribal-dominated area. People lack economic strength and it is not possible for every patient to go to private centers.
Hospital sources informed that it is not the first time for such a glitch. In May, the CHC remained without an X-Ray machine for 12 days due to the non-availability of X-Ray films and as a result that patients had to bear an extra burden on their pockets.
"Hundreds of patients suffer daily as they are forced to go to pay hefty amounts at local private centers and we have no choice, but to ask them to go ahead, despite we know the private centers charging double or triple from them," one of the doctors posted here said on condition of anonymity.
The worst affected are victims of medico-legal cases, where patients are referred from the other center here, just for an X-ray copy.
While the X-ray staff said they had apprised the office of the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of the problem, staff at the CMO office said nothing had been received in writing. Lack of coordination between the various sections of the district health department has led to an interruption in X-ray facilities to patients.
