Mumbai: Dysfunctional MRI at Tata Memorial takes toll on treatment

Patients await treatment at Tata Memorial Hospital

Bashir Ahmed, a stone carving artist, arrived from Kashmir's Bandipora to Mumbai's Tata Memorial Hospital on June 5 for further treatment of a tumour on his hand. However, within a few days, he had to return home as the hospital rescheduled his MRI scan to July 8. Like him, at least 30 more patients were asked to come at a later date because one of the hospital's two MRI machines has been dysfunctional since Sunday.

"After arriving, I was first told to wait until June 15 for an MRI. Then on that day, I was asked to wait for a couple more days only to be told to come back in July. I was also told by the hospital that they would not accept an MRI done outside," Ahmed said. He couldn't afford to live in the city and returned home on Monday. "He spent Rs 19,000 on travel expenses for nothing. There is a lack of cancer treatment facilities in Kashmir, so a specialised hospital like Tata is his only option," said his relative, Shakeel Ur Rasool.

Hospital officials told mid-day that at present, because only one MRI machine is functional, only emergency patients as well as those scheduled for immediate critical surgeries are allowed to have the scan done. "We had it fixed today, but the machine shut down soon after scanning one patient. It is expected to be functional by Monday," the hospital representative said.

The representative also added, "We have a social worker who assigns accommodation to patients depending on availability, and the patient could have approached the department instead of going back." Bashir, however, said when he was informed about the rescheduling, he was not told about the accommodation facility. "I would have stayed back instead of spending an additional amount on travel," he said.