Mayo Hospital: Rs2 million equipment ‘theft’ raises concern
Mayo Hospital Medical Superintendent (MS) Zahid Pervaiz has ordered an inquiry into the theft of Rs2m equipment from the Albert Victor Hospital Operation Theatre.
Two dermatomes (skin grafting equipment) and a digital camera are reportedly missing from the operation theatre apparently for two months.
A dermatome costs Rs850,000 and the digital camera Rs70,000 to Rs85,000.
The inquiry team comprises Prof Imtiaz Bajwa, the controller of examination at the King Edward Medical University (KEMU), Additional Medical Superintendent Dr Nawab Din and Mayo Hospital Budget Officer Javed Iqbal.
Safia Begum, a staff nurse who first reported the equipment missing, has been nominated in the inquiry for being in charge of the record keeping at the theatre. She has, however, pleaded innocent.
In her statement submitted to the inquiry team and the MS, she said the Plastic Surgery Department head, Prof Farid Ahmad Khan, who is also the KEMU registrar, had taken away one of the dermatomes to his private clinic at Zafar Ali Road in 2011. She said she had asked Prof Khan for a voucher but he had refused and threatened her with sacking from the job if she dared raise the question again.
A few days ago, she said, she found a dermatome missing from the cupboard, while the other one lying in there was not the one Prof Khan had taken away.
“The one that belonged to the hospital was manufactured by Zimmer. The one lying now in the cupboard is made by some unknown company. I mentioned this in the Stock Register as well and it was signed by Dr Khan’s registrar,” she told the investigation team.
She said that Prof Khan could have taken the equipment once again, the MS said.
Talking to The Tribune, Prof Khan said he was not responsible for maintaining record of the equipment. He said he used the AVH Operation Theatre, but record keeping was the responsibility of the staff nurse.
“I did not take any dermatome for private use and I did not threaten her,” he said,
He said the stock register, maintained by the staff nurse, had record of who and when borrowed some equipment. He said his name was not there.
MS Dr Pervaiz said the report of the inquiry will be completed in a few days.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 19th, 2012.
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I am a former police officer and detective with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Police. I have been interested in the theft of medical equipment, which is a large problem in hospitals and other medical facilities around the world.
There have been a number of incidents in the under developed parts of the world where medical equipment has been removed from hospitals by medical staff for use in their private clinics.
Also some stolen medical equipment has ended up at used medical equipment dealers where it is purchased by medical practitioners for use in the their private practice due to the cost of bran new pieces of medical equipment.
In one incident a nurse at a California hospital stole four pacemakers worth $6,000.00 each. She sold tow of them on eBay for $411.00. They were purchased by a Cardiology Service in Arizona. One of them was implanted in a patient. It was not working right so the Cardiology Service notified the manufacturer with the serial number. Their records showed it was sold to the California hospital.