€6,000 a week on private CT scans as Mallow scanner lies idle
For the past three weeks, patients attending Mallow General Hospital in north Cork have been sent to the Bon Secours private hospital in Cork City, where each scan is carried out at a cost per patient of €600.
A HSE spokesperson said up to 10 patients a week are being referred to the Bon Secours for the high-spec diagnostic test, bringing the total spend on the private service so far to approximately €18,000.
The HSE said it had no option other than to treat patients privately because it has been unable to recruit a replacement for a locum radiologist who recently quit the service.
Fine Gael TD Bernard Allen described it as “another example of services being wasted”.
“We will be asking the HSE to explain why taxpayers’ money is being used in this manner when they appear before the Public Accounts Committee in the autumn,” said Mr Allen, who is chair of the committee. He raised the matter in a Dáil question last week and is awaiting a response from the HSE.
The CT scanner at Mallow has a long and chequered history. It lay idle for more than a year before becoming fully operational in September last year following the appointment of specialist staff to operate it.
Interviews for a permanent radiologist post were held by the Public Appointments Service in November 2008 and two appointees were panelled.
The successful radiologist was due to take up duty in July this year but declined the job in May. The second person on the panel also declined the post.
A locum radiologist had filled the post up to recently.
A statement from the HSE said hospital management was “disappointed that the post remains vacant” and “every effort possible is being made to secure a locum to continue the service”.
“However, there is stiff competition for locums and other hospitals are also experiencing difficulties in recruiting locums at this time,” the statement said.
The HSE said it had no option but to make alternative arrangements for patients. Cases deemed “clinically urgent” are being referred to the Bon Secours and an average of two patients a day are transferred by ambulance.
Mallow-based GP Dr Harry Casey said it meant “taking up ambulances that we need for emergencies”.
Dr Casey said the hospital has not had a permanent radiologist for up to 10 years. As a result, the hospital has not had a properly functioning radiological service, he said.
A CT scan is a diagnostic test that uses a computer linked to an x-ray machine to take pictures of the inside of the body. It is particularly useful for testing for bleeding in the brain (strokes), aneurysms, brain tumours and brain damage.
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