Irregularities Discovered In the Handling of Money for the Curie Cancer Research Hospital
<p><span style="line-height: 20.8px;">It was confirmed by a report of the General Audit of the City. It also highlights shortcomings in the management of medical waste.</span></p>
According to a report by the Auditor General of the City of Buenos Aires (AGCBA, for its acronym in Spanish), the Buenos Aires Ministry of Health does not verify the management of funds for clinical research practiced in the Marie Curie Cancer Hospital. It suggested the "prompt implementation of corrective measures" following a "systematic failure" in checking balances for health care and "a lack of a clear policy" to collect overdue bills. These irregularities, says the AGCBA, increases the risks of withholding funds and omission or handling documentation regarding the patients seen at the headquarters of Caballito.
Clinical research is funded by sponsors who, in addition to defray the actual works, take care of the insurance policies covering damages that may arise in medical trials. This economic agreement is a must for the approval of a research protocol by any bioethics committee requirement. The AGCBA detected that the Research Advisory Council, which depends on Health "is not involved in the systematization of the financial aspects of Clinical Research Protocols."
Moreover, the City Watchdog found shortcomings in the management of medical waste at the Curie: "The Hospital does not perform an adequate control of the transfer and storage of medical waste, does not guarantee adequate provision of items, and does not supervise the staff assigned to the task," concludes the report.