CMCH to get ultramodern diagnostic and imaging centre

A diagnostic and imaging centre with ultramodern equipment is to be set up at Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH) in Chittagong.

The proposed diagnostic and imaging centre is a component of the Maternal Neonatal and Child Health Improvement Project.

Under this project, eight diagnostic and imaging centres will be set up in eight divisions of the country with a view to modernizing diagnostic and imaging services.

Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) is funding the project with an outlay of around Tk900 crore.

"The diagnostic and imaging centre will be housed in a five-storey building on the hospital premises and each story will have 7,000sqft space," CMCH Deputy Director Dr Akhterul Islam said.

"The diagnostic and imaging centre will have all ultramodern equipment like MRI, CT scan, all types of X-ray, endoscopy, bronchoscopy, colonoscopy, ultrasonography and CTR," said the deputy director.    

"The project has already received approval from the National Economic Council (NEC) and Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec). A contract agreement was signed on October 14, 2018, and Oriental Consultant Global Co Ltd was appointed to implement and supervise the project. Earlier, a preparatory survey had been conducted and location fixed for the project," added the deputy director.  

Speaking to the Dhaka Tribune, the Project Director Prof Dr Mizanur Rahman said: "The design of the diagnostic and imaging centre is yet to be finalized. Construction of the physical infrastructure will commence with the finalization of the design.  We are hopeful of beginning construction work by July this year.”

“The diagnostic and imaging centre will have regular equipment. Apart from that Pacs and RIS will be introduced at the centre," added the project director.   

PACS (picture archiving and communication system) is a medical imaging technology used primarily in healthcare organization to securely store and digitally transmit electronic images and clinically-relevant reports.

RIS (radiology information system) is a networked software system for managing medical imaging and associated data. RIS is especially useful for tracking radiology imaging orders and billing information, and is often used in conjunction with Pacs to manage image archives, recordkeeping and billing.

The lone tertiary level hospital in the district with 1,313 beds, the CMCH provides healthcare services to over 2,500 patients every day.