The informant claimed that the situation is true, and there was a shutdown during use. The internet exposed that a tertiary hospital in Guangxi illegally purchased a second-hand extracorporeal circulation machine. Medical College | Guilin | Extracorporeal Circulation
At the end of May, a post titled "Guangxi Nanxishan Hospital's Purchase of Second hand Extracorporeal Circulation Machine Becomes a Hot potato" appeared on the internet and attracted attention.
According to this post, Nanxishan Hospital in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region purchased a second-hand "extracorporeal circulation machine" from the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guilin Medical College at a high price five years ago, but it stopped working during use. To avoid medical accidents, this second-hand "extracorporeal circulation machine" became a decoration in the operating room of Nanxishan Hospital and a "hot potato".
In order to verify the authenticity of this post, Red Star News reporters contacted relevant insiders, and at least two of them confirmed that the post was basically true. Red Star News reporters visited Nanxishan Hospital and Affiliated Second Hospital on site, but neither hospital responded positively to this issue. A staff member of the Health Commission of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region responded that it is not yet clear about this matter.
Screenshots of online posts and articles
Online post reporting:
Third class hospitals illegally purchase second-hand extracorporeal circulation machines
According to online posts, the People's Hospital of Lingui County was renamed as the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guilin Medical College in 2014. Shortly after the renaming, the hospital spent nearly 4 million yuan to purchase an extracorporeal circulation machine. When the hospital leaders were transferred to work at Nanxishan Hospital in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, this extracorporeal circulation machine was purchased at a high price by Nanxishan Hospital. According to online posts, Nanxishan Hospital made unauthorized purchases without any procurement procedures and has not yet entered the warehouse.
According to online posts, Nanxishan Hospital is a provincial-level tertiary Grade A hospital, also known as the Second People's Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. This behavior belongs to the purchase of second-hand equipment from higher-level hospitals to lower level hospitals. And this extracorporeal circulation machine has only been used a few times since purchase, resulting in two midway shutdowns. The extracorporeal circulation machine is used for cardiac surgery. If it is stopped midway and handled improperly, the patient is highly likely to die on the spot. To avoid medical accidents, this second-hand "extracorporeal circulation machine" has become a decoration and a "hot potato" in the operating room of Nanxishan Hospital
The online post stated that according to relevant national regulations, hospitals should first go through approval procedures when purchasing extracorporeal circulation machines. After obtaining approval, the tenderer shall determine the corresponding funds or sources of funds for the bidding project and truthfully state them in the bidding documents. It is a serious illegal act for higher-level hospitals to purchase large equipment directly from lower level hospitals without passing the bidding process.
At the end of the online post, it was also stated that it hoped that superiors and news media would intervene in the investigation and fully understand the origin and development of this extracorporeal circulation machine.
Insiders say:
Buying second-hand equipment from lower level hospitals is indeed rare
According to the official website of Nanxishan Hospital, it is a national tertiary Grade A comprehensive hospital directly under the Health Commission of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, integrating medical, teaching, scientific research, prevention, health care, rehabilitation and other functions.
The reporter contacted an insider inside Nanxishan Hospital, who stated that the so-called extracorporeal circulation machine refers to a technology that uses a special device to temporarily replace the human heart and lungs for blood circulation and gas exchange. This device is divided into artificial heart and artificial lung, also collectively referred to as artificial heart and lung; Its working principle is to act as the working principle of the heart and lungs, and the extracorporeal circulation machine is a device that must be used for open heart surgery, with a usage time controlled within 8 hours.
This insider stated that the extracorporeal circulation machine reported in the online post was purchased by the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guilin Medical College in 2016. According to regulations, the purchase of such large-scale medical equipment requires a bidding process.
Announcement of the Recommendation Meeting for Extracorporeal Circulation Machines and Cardiac Surgical Instruments issued by the Second Affiliated Hospital
According to a notice released by the Second Affiliated Hospital in June 2016 regarding the introduction and recommendation of extracorporeal circulation machines and cardiac surgical instruments, Red Star News reporters found that the Second Affiliated Hospital plans to hold an introduction and recommendation meeting for extracorporeal circulation machines and cardiac surgical instruments in the near future. Interested companies are requested to contact the Equipment Department to register. Requirements for data preparation: equipment name, product quotation, equipment parameters, customer list, corporate business license, business license, equipment registration certificate, after-sales service commitment, etc. Participants are required to be familiar with equipment performance.
However, there is currently no detailed information on the bidding, auction, or hanging of this extracorporeal circulation machine in public information. An insider said, "The detailed purchase situation of this machine can only be checked by the hospital providing relevant materials. However, it can be confirmed that the Second Affiliated Hospital did indeed purchase an extracorporeal circulation machine under the supervision of a leader at that time."
In response to the online post "Nanxishan Hospital directly purchased from the Second Affiliated Hospital without bidding, which is a serious violation of the law," the insider said, "It can be basically confirmed that Nanxishan Hospital purchased from the Second Affiliated Hospital, but only a few people know how much it cost."
At the same time, the insider said, "For a hospital, especially a tertiary hospital like Nanxishan Hospital, purchasing large medical equipment requires bidding and hanging up to purchase new equipment, as it involves issues such as whether the equipment is qualified and can be used normally. It is indeed rare for a tertiary hospital like Nanxishan Hospital to purchase a second-hand equipment from the affiliated second hospital, which was still a tertiary hospital at the time, and there has been no precedent before."
According to the official website of the Second Affiliated Hospital, it was confirmed by the Health Commission of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in May 2021 as a tertiary hospital, previously a tertiary hospital.
Regarding the statement in the online post that "there were two shutdowns of the extracorporeal circulation machine during use and it has not been stored yet", the person familiar with the situation said, "This is indeed the case, only the detailed surgical records of the shutdowns have to be provided by the hospital, and ordinary people cannot obtain them."
In response to the above situation, another insider in the Guilin medical circle interviewed by the reporter also said, "The situation is basically true."
During the interview, a reporter from Red Star News contacted the then dean of the Second Affiliated Hospital who was operating the extracorporeal circulation machine. Currently, this dean has retired. The dean did not directly deny or confirm the situation reflected in the online post, but said, "There are detailed records in the hospital. It is recommended to contact the hospital. I am retired and it is not convenient to say too much about this matter."
Red Star News reporter obtained the nameplate of this extracorporeal circulation machine, which shows that its professional product name is: Artificial Heart and Lung Machine - Hydraulic Blood Pump; The production date is June 2015, with a usage period of 10 years. It is produced by a German enterprise and sold by a company in Shanghai.
To understand the sales and maintenance status of this machine, the reporter called the company, which immediately provided the sales manager's phone number in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The person in charge stated that due to the long sales time, it is necessary to inquire about the relevant sales in order to provide a response to the reporter. A few days later, the reporter called to inquire about the situation. The person in charge stated that the company had decided to have the company respond and agreed to provide the corresponding contact information. However, shortly after, the person in charge also stated that the company had decided not to accept the interview.
Hospital Introduction Posted Internally in Affiliated Second Hospital
Both hospitals avoid interviews
The Autonomous Region Health Commission responded with "unclear about this matter"
In order to verify and understand the aforementioned situation, the reporter conducted on-site visits to two hospitals.
During the interview with the Second Affiliated Hospital, a staff member of the department stated, "The interview needs to be decided by the department head." The next day, when the reporter called to inquire whether to report to the department head and whether to respond to the relevant situation during the interview, the female staff member stated that the department head has not yet arrived in the department. On the eve of publication, the reporter made multiple phone calls to the department, but remained unanswered.
During the interview, the reporter found the Dean of the Second Affiliated Institute. When the reporter requested an interview, the Dean expressed uncertainty and quickly left.
During the interview process at Nanxishan Hospital, the reporter also encountered a similar situation. The first time I met the head of the Propaganda Department at Nanxishan Hospital, the reporter explained the purpose of the interview. The head of the department stated that he needed to seek guidance from the hospital leaders before making a decision. Subsequently, both parties exchanged contact information. The next day, when the reporter called the phone number left by the department head to inquire about the report, the staff who answered the phone also said, "The department head is not available.". On the eve of publication, the reporter called the department's phone number again, but the staff who answered the call still stated that the department head was not available.
In addition, the reporter also made multiple phone calls to the Party Secretary and Dean of Nanxishan Hospital, but no one answered the phone. The interview text messages sent by the reporter also did not receive a response.
In response to this incident, the reporter contacted multiple departments such as the Office of the Health Commission of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the Propaganda Department, and the Health Supervision Office by phone. The staff who answered the phone said, "I did not pay attention to the relevant reports online and am not clear about this matter."
Experts say:
There are strict regulations for the procurement of large medical equipment in public hospitals
Li Jun, a lawyer from Yunnan Tianwaitian Law Firm, who has been engaged in legal services in the medical industry for a long time, said that according to relevant laws and regulations, there are strict regulations in various regions for the procurement of large medical equipment in public hospitals. Equipment exceeding a certain amount must be purchased by the government and go through the bidding process. For example, in Yunnan, any procurement exceeding 500000 yuan must go through the government procurement process.
According to the 2018 2019 Government Centralized Procurement Catalogue and Limit Standards released by Guangxi, the limit standards for goods and service procurement have been adjusted from the original autonomous region level and district level cities with a minimum of 100000 yuan to: autonomous region level with a minimum of 200000 yuan, district level cities and county-level cities with a minimum of 100000 yuan. Unified standards for the amount of open bidding in the entire region, with goods exceeding 1.2 million yuan, engineering exceeding 2 million yuan in accordance with relevant national regulations, and service exceeding 800000 yuan.
"The process of government procurement bidding and hanging is relatively transparent and fair, which can avoid some corruption and ensure the quality of equipment. For equipment like extracorporeal circulation machines, one hospital directly purchases' second-hand 'from another hospital. This is the first time I have heard of this situation, which may occur between private hospitals. For example, purchasing a second-hand equipment with guaranteed quality can meet the needs of private hospitals and save costs. However, in the procurement process of public hospitals, such situations almost never occur. If, as reported, this equipment still experiences' shutdown' during use after purchase, it would be even more strange." Li Jun said.
Regarding the statement of replacement, Li Jun stated that if it is indeed approved by the provincial health commission, the equipment replacement and circulation in public hospitals can also be done. After all, it is a complementary utilization of internal resources approved by the health system. However, this approach is not common, and it also involves the issue of state-owned asset disposal, which requires even more caution.
An expert from a famous hospital in Beijing also agrees with this. This expert stated that there are increasingly strict regulations and constraints on the disposal of state-owned assets in hospitals. For example, in our hospital, even the disposal of a chair currently requires strict procedures. It is impossible to dispose of, sell or exchange a large medical equipment to another hospital shortly after purchase. This cannot be explained, as you must have purchased the equipment in need. If the equipment is good and has a demand, why should it be disposed of after only one or two years of use? If the equipment is bad, why would it go through bidding and hanging to buy an unqualified equipment? Or if it is good and damaged during use, why not go to the manufacturer for repair or claim compensation instead? How about dealing with it
"Generally, for large equipment procurement like ours, it is necessary to go through the government procurement bidding process. I have never heard of a public hospital buying a second-hand equipment from another hospital. However, since the two hospitals have not publicly responded to this matter, many details are unclear and cannot be evaluated too much," said the expert.
