The Bemina branch of the Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) has failed to conduct orthopedic surgeries for the last two weeks owing to a fault in critical operating equipment.
According to sources at the hospital, the SKIMS Bemina administration has overlooked the urgent need to repair the broken C-Arm machine even as the inoperability of the equipment has led to surgeries being canceled.
“In some cases, we just cannot conduct the surgeries. If we start drilling and touch an artery by mistake, a patient can even die. This can lead to a lot of trouble,” a source said, adding that the administration hasn’t responded to several reminders. “This has not happened for the first time but this has taken a little more than normal to get repaired. It has been around fifteen days now.”
The C-Arm is an imaging scanner intensifier with radiographic capabilities used during surgical, orthopedic and emergency care procedures. The source said that C-Arm is used during surgeries in case of any intra-articular fractures and pediatric fractures. “Spine surgery cannot be done because spine fixation is done using C-Arm except for situations where you don’t use the plates and screws,” the source said.
The source further said that C-Arm is required during every surgery for the plates and internal splints used for holding broken bones, screws used for holding plates with bones and fracture reductions to be perfect. The C-Arm equipment has been in use in SKIMS Bemina since the past two decades.
Shafa Deva, the Medical Superintendent at SKIMS Bemina, however, denied any shortcomings. “There is no issue like this as such,” she said before disconnecting the call.
