India's Diagnostics Industry
Radiology and Imaging
How X-ray, ultrasound, CT and MRI centres need expensive machines and radiologists, why imaging is concentrated in cities, and the shortage of radiologists.
Radiology uses imaging machines.
Machines
- X-ray and ultrasound: cheaper, widespread.
- CT and MRI: expensive, mostly in cities.
Costs
An MRI machine costs crores of rupees, so centres need many scans to recover costs.
Radiologists
India has a shortage of radiologists, especially outside cities.
Teleradiology
Scans are sent digitally to radiologists elsewhere, even abroad.
Ultrasound rules
The PCPNDT Act tightly regulates ultrasound to prevent sex-selective abortion.
Access
Rural patients travel far for CT and MRI.
A CT scan done at night in a small hospital is read by a radiologist in another city via teleradiology.
CT and MRI are concentrated in cities.
- Radiology needs costly machines.
- CT and MRI are mostly in cities.
- Radiologists are scarce.
- Teleradiology helps.
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