Inoperable $200M cardiac machine at GPHC attracts Auditor General’s attention

Oct 20, 2016 News

…as Ministry urged to follow-up on abandoned works at psychiatric hospital

A $200 million cardiac cauterisation machine, which was procured by the Ministry of Health in 2012 to help advance cardiac care at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), was up to April of this year still not operational.
This development was highlighted in the Auditor General Report of the fiscal year ended 2015.
In the Report, the Audit Office has recommended that the Head of Budget Agency ensure that the machine is fully operational.
While acknowledging that the machine has been received and is in the care of the GPHC, the Ministry in its response made no effort to ascertain by when the machine will become operational.
According to the findings of the Audit Office, the former High Dependency Unit (HDU) at the GPHC was converted to house the cardiac cauterisation machine. The Ministry in 2012, the Report said, expended the $200 million to acquire cardiac cauterization laboratory materials.
But there were apparent issues with the setting-up of the laboratory from the inception as according to the Audit Report, although procured in 2012, the machine was still not received up to the time of reporting in 2013.
However by 2015 the machine was in the possession of the GPHC. But although physical verification of the equipment and components were conducted in 2015, at that time the equipment was received but not in operation, the Report revealed. Follow-up verification of the equipment in April 2016 highlighted too that it was still not fully operational.
This procurement was listed in the Audit Report, which was recently laid before Parliament, among the capital expenditure of the Ministry of Public Health.
Listed among its capital expenditure is a contract for the construction of an Acute Care Psychiatric Hospital in Region Six. The contract, according to the Report, was awarded in 2011 to the lowest responsive bidder, to the tune of $112.739 million.
But at the end of 2012, the contractor was paid sums amounting to $91.923 million, of which $15.722 million were for unexecuted works.
However, physical verification of the works on September 4, 2013 revealed that the works appeared then to have been abandoned for a prolonged period of time, the Report noted.
It was further outlined that, “No personnel or equipment from the contractor was on site, which was also overgrown with vegetation. Termite nests were also noted on various areas of the building.”
It was revealed that at the time of reporting in June 2014, there was no evidence that the works were completed and the amount of $15.722 million in respect of unexecuted works were recovered from the contractor.
Further, a revisit was done on January 29, 2016 to the project, and based on the examination of the works, the items identified as overpayments remained.
But the Ministry in its response to the Audit Office’s findings said that it was explained by the Head of the Budget Agency that the contract was extended to February 28, 2014, for unfinished works to be completed.
It was also explained that works to be completed at the Acute Care Psychiatric Hospital are as follows: installation of the light fixtures and connection to the source of power, and the cover to the roof of the shed over the main entrance, amounting to roughly $3.88 million. While it was offered that “all unfinished works were completed before the end of 2014,” the Audit Office urged that the Ministry follow-up the matter with the relevant authority in order to bring closure.

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Inoperable $200M cardiac machine at GPHC attracts Auditor General’s attention

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