Photographs of a shabby Paola Health Centre that are being circulated via e-mail anonymously are deceptive, the Director of Primary Health Care, Dennis Vella Baldacchino, said.

The photographs, which have also been sent to The Times, depict a health centre in a state of neglect. Patient files kept in boxes, torn chairs and beds and worn out lockers are among the items that feature in the photographs.

A representative of The Times visited the health centre in Paola unannounced yesterday morning. Walking into the centre, it becomes evident that the building is past its prime with its metal railings and black and white commonplace tiles. However, all common areas, including waiting rooms, were clean. In fact, some areas were being washed at the time.

The seats in the waiting areas were in good condition. Behind the reception, hundreds of files could be seen on shelving and others in cardboard boxes - the only visible confirmation of the authenticity of the anonymous photographs.

The Times then asked to speak to Senior Medical Officer Michael Balzan regarding the photographs received. Dr Balzan, who runs the health centre, said he was not in a position to answer questions and referred The Times to Dr Vella Baldacchino.

When contacted by The Times, Dr Vella Baldacchino expressed his disappointment at the fact that the photographs were being circulated when, since October last year, his directorate had set up a board to draw up an inventory of all health centres with the aim of getting rid of worn-out furniture.

It was established that there were various items that needed to be disposed of. However, being a government department, there was a procedure to follow and one could not just get rid of items at will, he explained.

The photographs showed tattered armchairs, giving the impression that those were there to stay when the process was underway to scrap them. He added that the majority of such items, some featured in the photos, have already been disposed of, suggesting that the images were some weeks old.

Plans were in hand to replace the chairs with those at St Luke's Hospital which were still in a good condition. An inventory was in the process of being compiled at the old hospital.

Dr Vella Baldacchino said the health centres, including the one in Paola, were also reorganising their filing systems and were waiting for the necessary shelving. This, he said, was a prelude to the shift to the electronic filing system to be introduced in future. Meanwhile, some files were temporarily stored in boxes. Again, the photos showed files in boxes without explaining the temporary nature, he noted.

The photographs making the rounds showed "a truth that was not true". While it was true that, for example, there were worn-out chairs and that files had been kept in boxes, the photographs failed to tell the whole story and explain that this was temporary. This was deceiving and constituted misinformation, Dr Vella Baldacchino said.