The São Miguel Island Medical Unit (USISM) has reorganized the services provided at the Ponta Delgada Medical Center following the fire at the Divino Espirito Santo Hospital, suspending consultations on Tuesday, it was announced this Monday.
In a statement, USISM Board of Directors President Sandra Silva said that “taking into account the regional public disaster situation declared by the regional government of the Azores, caused by the closure of the Divino Espirito Santo Hospital,” business as usual “maintains regular work in all health centers and related health institutions, with the exception of services” at the headquarters of the Ponta Delgada Medical Center.
The note mentions that the Ponta Delgada Medical Center provides “a wound care center, a pulmonary diagnostic center, school health, a drug addiction center, a reimbursement service, a user’s office and home health care teams.”
However, on Tuesday, “other assistance activities (consultations) at the headquarters of the Ponta Delgada Medical Center are suspended” and “the rescheduling of these activities is being considered from the 8th of Wednesday.”
“The main emergency departments at the Nordeste, Povoação, Ribeira Grande and Vila Franca do Campo health centers are open 24 hours a day,” the statement also said.
“USISM is aware of the impact of these restrictions on its users and is making every effort to keep it to a minimum,” added the person in charge.
The San Miguel Island Medical Unit confirmed that it provides family members of hospitalized patients at 296249220 with “a team of social workers and psychologists to provide the necessary clarifications” and that “visits depend on management reasons, physical space and human resources.” “.
The fire, which broke out at the Ponta Delgada hospital on Saturday at 9:40 local time (in Lisbon at 10:40) and was declared extinguished only at 16:11, forced the transfer of all hospitalized patients.
Some patients were transferred from the Divino Espirito Santo Hospital in Madeira and were received at the Dr. Neliu Mendonça Hospital and the Garnisan Regiment (RG) No. 3 in Funchal, all of whose condition is “stable,” according to a statement from the clinical director of the hospital department, Julio Nobrega.
The 55 patients transferred from the Azores (fewer than originally expected, more than six dozen) arrived “around 02:30 at night at the airport and were taken to the hospital department and military zone RG3,” he explained.
The person in charge also recalled that three patients had already arrived in the Madeira region on Sunday: two high-risk pregnant women admitted to the obstetrics department and a patient who was in intensive care and is now in the same department at the Dr. Nelio Mendonça Hospital.
On Sunday, the Azores government declared a public disaster due to a fire at the Ponta Delgada hospital on the island of São Miguel, with regional Health and Social Welfare Secretary Monica Seydi saying the facility had already undergone two inspections with no forecast for normal operations to resume no equipment yet.
According to the head of the Azores health authority, at the time of the fire there were 333 patients in the medical facility and 240 people needed to be transferred.
The most critical and serious patients were transferred to the CUF hospital in Lagoa, while the rest were transferred to medical centers.
In addition to the Hospital do Divino Espirito Santo, there are two other hospitals in the Azores, on the islands of Terceira (in Angra do Heroísmo) and Faial (in Horta), to which more than 50 patients were transferred.
Meanwhile, the President of the Regional Government of the Azores (PSD/CDS-PP/PPM), José Manuel Bolheiro, announced today that the Armed Forces will establish a field hospital on the site of the Ponta Delgada hospital.
José Manuel Bolheiro spoke after visiting the Divino Espirito Santo Hospital with Health Minister Ana Paula Martins.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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