The Tobago Regional Health Authority (TRHA) is giving the assurance its Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machine will be fixed soon. It’s the only machine of its kind in Tobago.
The status of the machine was brought into focus on Thursday after an Office of the Prime Minister release said Dr Keith Rowley was taken to the Scarborough General Hospital for an MRI test to monitor his lungs.
He tested positive for COVID-19 and is in quarantine at the Prime Minister’s official residence at Blenheim, Tobago.
In its media WhatsApp chat, the TRHA subsequently corrected the information on the type of test Dr Rowley underwent.
“The PM was given a CT SCAN and not MRI. The CT Scan was done by staff in full PPE following protocol for positive patients, and the area was immediately sanitized after the procedure,” the text read.
Guardian Media reached out to the TRHA for more information about the machine.
In an emailed response, the TRHA said the machine has not been working since June 2020.
The authority said at the time it malfunctioned, “the focus was on creating dual pathways to treat the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic in Tobago.”
It also said after “several assessments” it was determined that the machine “could be refurbished.”
The TRHA added, the tendering process to secure the part is complete, the parts were bought for the “repair of the machine in the shortest time frame.”
The authority also said in the meantime, the CT scanner is used for patients’ urgent imaging at the hospital.
It also noted the CT scanner is the better machine to use than the MRI, in some situations but added, “one cannot be considered better than the other.”
The TRHA said if patients at the Scarborough Hospital are sent to Trinidad for an MRI, it covers the cost.