3 months for a test at Lok Nayak OPD, 45 days at Indira Gandhi hospital: Report in Delhi HC flags backlog
For a CT scan, a patient has to wait for seven to eight months in the OPD and 10 to 12 days in the IPD (inpatient department).
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To undergo an MRI at the hospital, a patient will need to wait for around 36 to 40 months at the OPD and 20 to 30 days in a ward. (Express Photo by Amit Mehra)Even as the Delhi High Court has been stressing expanding the city’s health infrastructure, the latest data submitted before the court indicates the burden on some government hospitals — with the patient backlog of tests or diagnoses running into months.
According to an affidavit filed on behalf of the AIIMS director before the court — through AIIMS Assistant Professor Dr Nishant Sharma on October 11 — patients have to wait for three to four months to undergo tests at the OPD (outpatient department) of Lok Nayak Hospital and eight to nine months to undergo tests at its wards.
To undergo an MRI at the hospital, a patient will need to wait for around 36 to 40 months at the OPD and 20 to 30 days in a ward. For a CT scan, a patient has to wait for seven to eight months in the OPD and 10 to 12 days in the IPD (inpatient department).
While at the Indira Gandhi Hospital, a patient has to wait for 30 to 45 days to get tested and at Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital, the wait time is 45 days. At GIPMER, one will need to wait for around 16 months in the OPD and two weeks if admitted to the ward to undergo an MRI.
Moreover, at Acharya Shree Bhikshu Hospital, the waiting time when it comes to undergoing an X-Ray is one day. At Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital, one will have to wait for one or two days to get an appointment for a CT scan.
In a status report, the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) also told the HC that the Delhi government is in the process of outsourcing radiological services in a public-private partnership mode. The process is expected to be completed in around three months, “subject to the Cabinet’s approval”, it added.
In a meeting chaired by AIIMS Director Dr M Srinivas following the court’s directions on October 4, it was informed that a proposal for purchasing 20 CT scan, 12 MRI, and 52 ultrasonography machines has been put up for approval.
An affidavit filed by Deputy Secretary (Health) Sharat Kumar told the HC that as of October 15, 33 hospitals of the GNCTD have 14,0000 beds. “However, to ensure they are available for patients, the current budget of Rs 4,200 crore is not adequate,” it added.
“… keeping in view the budgetary constraints, the government is exploring all possibilities to make good the deficiency from the next financial year, and in this regard, it is also being explored as to whether the upcoming hospitals, upon their completion, could be run on PPP model”
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