Over 2 million tests done at IGMH lab annually

The laboratory at Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) carries out about two million tests annually, data shared by the hospital has revealed.

Speaking at a press conference held yesterday, CEO of Malé Group of Hospitals, which also manages IGMH among several other hospitals in the region, Ibrahim Abdul Razzaq Haleem, said that that laboratory carries out roughly 1.9 million diagnostic tests per year.

Other data shared by the Group shows that 150,000 people seek treatment at the hospital's emergency and General Practitioner (GP) department per year, while this figure is nearly doubled at Hulhumalé Hospital with 238,978 patients. However, the figure is much lower at Villimalé Hospital, at only 2,307 patients for the whole year.

In terms of surgery statistics, IGMH does about 25,500 surgeries a year while Hulhumalé Hospital only does 1,696 surgeries, with Villimalé Hospital not offering surgical treatments as of yet.

IGMH has also done 285,120 x-rays and scans over the span of a year with Hulhumalé Hospital's figures at 121,531 and Villimalé Hospital with much less demand. The hospital did only 5,697 x-rays and surgeries during that time.

In a year, IGMH has had 15,000 patients admitted to the hospital for treatment while Hulhumalé Hospital had 4,480 patients during the same time.

Haleem said although Villimalé Hospital is designated as a hospital, they are not able to provide services to that level. He revealed the government's plans to develop a new hospital in the same building, and detailed that a Chinese company has been commissioned to conduct the relevant studies. They are also working to provide an alternative health care service option for the people of Hulhumalé, he also said.

This includes the official commencement of dental services at Villimalé tomorrow.