The Hindu: Madurai: Monday, 20 May 2024.
From January 2022 to April 2024, the Right to Information Act (RTI) reply has revealed that ESWL (Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy) machine, installed at the Urology department of Government Rajaji Hospital had worked only for about 190 days
The ESWL (Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy) machine, installed at the Urology department of Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai, which is used to clear stones in kidneys, ureter, pancreatic duct and bile ducts, had malfunctioned numerous times. From January 2022 to April 2024, the Right to Information Act (RTI) reply has revealed that it had worked only for about 190 days.
The RTI reply has brought to light the issue of several recurring problems in the machine from January 2022 and that the gadget had properly functioned for only about six months.
The ESWL procedure is preferred by doctors when the size of the stone in the body is large enough, making it difficult to clear it by usual procedures. The ESWL, which is a non-invasive procedure, reportedly breaks down stones in parts of the urinary system, in the pancreas and in the bile ducts.
“It uses shock waves that are aimed at stones, with the help of X-rays or ultrasound, after which the stones in the kidneys and ureter often pass on their own after the procedure,” a doctor said.
While the number of inpatients in the Urology department stood at 1,194 in 2022 it went up to 1,775 in 2023. The increasing number signifies the importance of the machine as many of the patients visiting the department might suffer from kidney stones, said Veronica Mary, a health activist in Madurai.
Further, the data sought for the number of stone removal cases treated using ESWL procedure, the RTI revealed that the machine was under repair from January-April 2022 and, after repair, from May-September 2022 120 patients were treated.
Again, from October 2022 to January 2024, the ESWL machine did not work, said the response. Following this, a new ESWL machine bought from a firm in New Delhi at a cost of ₹3.24 crore was installed on February 27 this year.
Until March 12, trial run was performed on 13 cases, after which the machine worked for six days (March 13 to 18) during which 11 cases were registered. Again, on March 19, the ESWL machine went under repair. It started working from April 6.
Pointing to the repeated issues with the ESWL machine, which was one of the important equipment in the government hospital where about thousands of people from southern districts visited on a daily basis, Ms. Mary questioned why the government could not test it thoroughly prior to buying such an expensive life-saving equipment.
“The major reason that was cited for the delay in repairing the machine was that they did not have a qualified technician to understand the machine and its functioning,” she added.
Doctors at the hospital said the faulty part was to be sent to the country of origin to solve the problem.
“When expensive equipment that is used to ease the medical process of clearing the kidney stone is not working for more than 21 months, what do the doctors have as an alternative,” she asked.
Qualified engineers’ teams should be deployed in government hospitals to periodically monitor all medical equipment to prevent the frequent glitches in the machines, she said.
From January 2022 to April 2024, the Right to Information Act (RTI) reply has revealed that ESWL (Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy) machine, installed at the Urology department of Government Rajaji Hospital had worked only for about 190 days
The ESWL (Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy) machine, installed at the Urology department of Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai, which is used to clear stones in kidneys, ureter, pancreatic duct and bile ducts, had malfunctioned numerous times. From January 2022 to April 2024, the Right to Information Act (RTI) reply has revealed that it had worked only for about 190 days.
The RTI reply has brought to light the issue of several recurring problems in the machine from January 2022 and that the gadget had properly functioned for only about six months.
The ESWL procedure is preferred by doctors when the size of the stone in the body is large enough, making it difficult to clear it by usual procedures. The ESWL, which is a non-invasive procedure, reportedly breaks down stones in parts of the urinary system, in the pancreas and in the bile ducts.
“It uses shock waves that are aimed at stones, with the help of X-rays or ultrasound, after which the stones in the kidneys and ureter often pass on their own after the procedure,” a doctor said.
While the number of inpatients in the Urology department stood at 1,194 in 2022 it went up to 1,775 in 2023. The increasing number signifies the importance of the machine as many of the patients visiting the department might suffer from kidney stones, said Veronica Mary, a health activist in Madurai.
Further, the data sought for the number of stone removal cases treated using ESWL procedure, the RTI revealed that the machine was under repair from January-April 2022 and, after repair, from May-September 2022 120 patients were treated.
Again, from October 2022 to January 2024, the ESWL machine did not work, said the response. Following this, a new ESWL machine bought from a firm in New Delhi at a cost of ₹3.24 crore was installed on February 27 this year.
Until March 12, trial run was performed on 13 cases, after which the machine worked for six days (March 13 to 18) during which 11 cases were registered. Again, on March 19, the ESWL machine went under repair. It started working from April 6.
Pointing to the repeated issues with the ESWL machine, which was one of the important equipment in the government hospital where about thousands of people from southern districts visited on a daily basis, Ms. Mary questioned why the government could not test it thoroughly prior to buying such an expensive life-saving equipment.
“The major reason that was cited for the delay in repairing the machine was that they did not have a qualified technician to understand the machine and its functioning,” she added.
Doctors at the hospital said the faulty part was to be sent to the country of origin to solve the problem.
“When expensive equipment that is used to ease the medical process of clearing the kidney stone is not working for more than 21 months, what do the doctors have as an alternative,” she asked.
Qualified engineers’ teams should be deployed in government hospitals to periodically monitor all medical equipment to prevent the frequent glitches in the machines, she said.
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