The number of radiological examinations performed at the Radiology Department of Paphos General Hospital - excluding the measurement of bone density, the machine of which was damaged - increased in 5 out of 6 categories, says the Director of the Radiology Department of Paphos General Hospital Dr. Eulalia Psara in a statement issued after the spontaneous work stoppage of the Department's technologists.
What is being requested is to place a second on the night shift, as in other cities, Dr. Psara said, rejecting criticisms, she said, about a reduction in the department's revenue.
The Radiology Department of the General Hospital of Paphos. Paphos, she explains, performs examinations of inpatients admitted to the hospital, examinations of patients of the Accident and Emergency Department and examinations of outpatients through GIS appointments.
Indicatively, she noted that 4,374 CT examinations were performed in 2020, 5,150 in 2021 and 3 in 2022 from 1/1/- 31/8.750 and by the end of the year 5,625 examinations have been predetermined.
With regard to mammograms, he said that in 2020 1110 were done, in 2021 they increased to 1,499 and that 1,288 were done by August 31, 2022, and by the end of the year 1,292 will be done.
With regard to X-rays, in the year 2020 19.033, in 2021 they were 23,413 and in 2022, by August 31, there were 17,445 and it is determined that a total of 26,167 will be done by the end of the year.
With regard to panoramas, in 2020 there were 1801, in the year 2021 there were 1,335 and in 2022 by 31.8.22 there were 1,047 and by the end of the year there will be 1,570.
Regarding bone density, in 2020 there were 602 exams and ultrasounds, in 2020 there were 2813, in 2021 there were 2624 and by August 31, 2022 there were 1657 and by the end of the year there are set to be 2485.
As can be seen from the data, Dr. Psara notes, the number of radiological examinations performed in the department - excluding bone density measurement, whose machine malfunctioned increased in 5 out of 6 categories.
"Any attempted performance measurement of our department must take into account all of these examinations. It should be noted that the Paphos General Hospital Emergency Department, which we cover 24/7, is the only emergency department in the entire Paphos province that is integrated into the GESY," she said.
However, regarding specifically the decrease in revenue of the third category, to which reference was made, Dr. Psara noted that recently there has been a drop in the costing of radiology examinations by the OAI. There has been a decrease in the number of referrals issued by personal physicians due to the imposition of a penalty by OAI. There is frequent rejection of claims for reimbursement by the system due to "innocent bureaucratic errors (e.g. date of examination, IDT) without prior consultation with colleagues in order to correct the data".
He added that "due to the inability to recruit new doctors from the OCYPY and the consequent failure to recruit new colleagues, the department operated with reduced staff until recently."
He added that a "not insignificant number of our outpatient appointments are not GHS beneficiaries, as they fall into other categories of beneficiaries. Their tests are not recorded and not counted."
He also said that for more than two years, the DEXA bone density measurement machine was not functioning, resulting in the loss of significant revenue.
The presence of an active COVID-19 chamber at the hospital and the performance of tests on COVID-positive patients - in the same room as scheduled appointments - is causing a decrease in outpatient recruitment due to fear of infection, he also said.
"Our building facilities - which date back to the last century - as well as problems with the layout of the space, are not conducive to attracting outpatients," it concludes."
Source: CNA
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