Medical equipment procured in 2023 is still not used - reasons
Kyiv • UNN
In 2023, the Ministry of Health purchased 44 units of expensive medical equipment, but as of November 2024, only 2 of them are in operation. The Accounting Chamber has identified systemic problems with the distribution and installation of equipment.
In 2023, the Ministry of Health purchased 44 units of expensive equipment for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, among other things, for medical institutions.
This was reported by the Accounting Chamber, according to UNN.
However, as of November 2024, only two of them were commissioned, or 4.5% of the total.
In 2023, the Ministry of Health, through the State Enterprise “Medical Procurement of Ukraine”, for the first time centrally procured high-value medical equipment for healthcare facilities that provide medical care to military personnel and/or oncological medical care at the expense of the state budget. In particular, 15 innovative linear accelerator systems, 28 magnetic resonance imaging scanners (1.5 Tesla and 3 Tesla) and a dental computed tomography scanner were purchased
For the first time, the Ministry of Health has centrally purchased medical equipment worth UAH 1.6 billion. The deliveries were supposed to be completed in 2023, but the implementation was delayed until 2024. By November 2024, medical facilities had received only half of the equipment, but it was not put into operation.
The audit revealed a number of problems
High-value medical equipment was not put into operation on time due to a number of organizational problems at the Ministry of Health and the State Enterprise Medical Procurement of Ukraine:
There was no proper collection and analysis of information on the needs of medical institutions for such equipment;
The procurement process contained significant shortcomings;
The Ministry of Health has not defined clear criteria for the distribution of purchased equipment among medical institutions.
The Accounting Chamber recorded the following violations:
The equipment that did not meet the requirements for type and quantity was distributed between the two healthcare facilities;
The equipment was delivered to institutions that did not have the premises ready to install it, and the Ministry of Health did not make any decisions to address this problem;
In some institutions, equipment was stored in conditions that could affect its performance.
In addition, there were several cases of redistribution of equipment between medical institutions, as well as changes in the terms of contracts that delayed delivery. This indicates systemic problems in the organization of the procurement process and management decision-making.
As a result, despite significant expenditures of public funds, medical institutions do not use the new equipment, and citizens continue to be deprived of access to medical services that could be provided with this equipment.
Although the procurement allowed to save budget funds (for example, linear accelerators were 47% cheaper than planned), a significant part of the equipment never reached patients.The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine is recommended:
To oblige regional administrations to provide medical institutions that have received linear accelerators with additional equipment for their commissioning;
Ensure that the premises for the installation of linear accelerators and MRI scanners in medical institutions are completed.
The Ministry of Health needs to:
Understand the reasons for delays in putting expensive equipment into operation and take steps to speed up the process;
Define clear rules and criteria for the distribution of medical equipment between medical institutions.
The State Enterprise Medical Procurement of Ukraine should do the following:
Establish a unit to control the correctness of documents for payment and delivery of equipment under contracts, with responsibility for violations;
Ensure control over the correctness of the evaluation of tender proposals and responsibility for errors in this process.
The Ministry of Health reported that it would work to correct problems with the medical and technical requirements for equipment, and the State Enterprise Medical Procurement of Ukraine promised to monitor documents more closely to ensure the correctness of supplies and the quality of medical equipment.
The report and the decision of the Accounting Chamber will be sent to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the audited entities, as well as published on the official website of the institution
Recall
UNN wrote that from January 1 , state medical institutions will be able to provide paid services.
