The only Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machine at Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH) has resumed operations after remaining out of service for nearly a month, easing patient suffering and restoring a critical diagnostic service.
Hospital authorities said test procedures on the machine began on Saturday afternoon following repairs. The MRI unit, part of the hospital’s radiology department, had been non-functional since March 6, causing significant disruption for patients reliant on advanced imaging.
During the outage, patients were forced to seek services at private diagnostic centres, where costs ranged from Tk 7,000 to Tk 18,000—substantially higher than the Tk 3,000–4,000 charged at CMCH.
Officials said the machine was repaired using parts collected from a defective unit at Rajshahi Medical College Hospital.
MRI is a vital diagnostic tool used to detect conditions affecting the brain, spine, heart, and other critical organs. At CMCH, a major tertiary care facility with around 2,200 beds but typically treating over 2,500 inpatients, demand for MRI scans remains high. The machine can conduct 8 to 10 scans daily, with each test taking approximately 40 minutes.
The current MRI unit, a Hitachi 1.5 Tesla model, was installed in August 2017 at a cost of Tk 9.84 crore with government funding. However, it has faced repeated technical failures over the years.
After initial operational delays, the machine became fully functional in early 2018 but broke down again before completing three years of service. It was repaired in 2021, went out of order again in August 2022, and remained inactive for nearly three years. Following repairs costing Tk 3.48 crore, it was restarted in June 2025, only to malfunction again in March this year.
Head of Radiology Department, Dr Kazi Md Alam, confirmed that the machine is now operational and patient services have resumed.
Hospital Director Brigadier General Md Taslim Uddin also confirmed the development, stating that diagnostic activities using the MRI machine are currently underway.
