X-Ray machines out of service in various clinics – Labour MP

Labour's spokesperson on health Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca said a lack of investment in X-Ray machines for local health centres had put more stress on services at Mater Dei hospital.

Coleiro Preca said older X-Ray machines in use at Mater Dei had to make good for the demand from patients in the catchment areas of Qormi, Paola and Floriana health centres, which could not provide basic X-Ray services since their machines were undergoing repairs.

"On the other hand, the Birkirkara, Rabat and Bormla centres do not even have this basic service for important, primary investigations. 'GonziPN' used millions on projects of no importance to people's lives such as the new parliament building, and lost time in seeing to his internal party issues, but cannot find money for the health services that are the most important to people's lives," Coleiro Preca said. "As it stands, this situation shows that the Nationalists' promise to reform primary healthcare 20 years ago was nothing but a ruse."

On its part, the health ministry defended its investment record in polyclinics around the island, and that Mosta health centre has a 24-hour digital X-Ray service. "The reality is that when a machine breaks down, it gets fixed - it's a serious way of delivering a service to the patient," health minister Joe Cassar said.

"Labour ignores what we have done in healthcare, saying nothing of our scheme for MRIs and knee operations in private hospitals, our agreement with the Italian government for specialised care, and our status within the WHO as an exemplary health system," Cassar said.