BACOLOD City – The City Health Office (CHO) is under investigation after reports reached the City Legal Office (CLO) that several X-ray film supplies have already expired.
City Legal Officer Atty. Karol Joseph Chiu said an inventory team has been assigned to conduct a thorough audit of all CHO supplies following initial information that the X-ray films went unused after the X-ray machine became unserviceable.
In a media interview on Monday, October 6, Chiu revealed that the machine has been out of order for around two years, which led to the expiration of the X-ray films.
“Ginapa-check kag pa-explain sa ila ngaa naglawig na ina nga guba. Ginapa-verify man ang record sang maintenance kon san-o sila nag-request pakaayo kag ngaa naglab-ot sa duha ka tuig nga guba,” Chiu said.
He emphasized that every public health facility must maintain complete and functional equipment to ensure quality service for the public.
“Simple lang nga X-ray machine dapat makaayo kay amo na ginakadtuan sang tawo kag dapat available ini always,” he added.
Due to the broken X-ray machine, the CHO has been referring patients to other health facilities that offer X-ray services. The city government shoulders the cost for indigent clients.
However, Chiu pointed out that even if the service is free for indigents, it should still be available at the CHO so that other clients can access affordable diagnostic services.
Meanwhile, the CLO is also monitoring the CHO’s anti-rabies vaccine supply after discovering that some patients under Category III (severe exposure with deep bites) were still queuing for vaccination.
According to CHO, only patients classified under Category III animal bites are eligible for free anti-rabies vaccines./PN
