The chairman of the St James hospital group Josie Muscat has told The Malta Independent Online that the decision to terminate the free emergency service offered at Sliema and Zabbar on weekends was taken unilaterally.

“Absolutely no consultation took place. We were only informed by a letter sent by the health permanent secretary. We used to see an average of 180 patients a month in Zabbar and Sliema,” Dr Muscat said.

Initially launched back in May of last year, the purpose of the deal reached between the government and the private hospital was to ease the pressure on the emergency department of Mater Dei Hospital when it is at its highest.

“The terms of the contract were very limited. For example, we could not treat children, pregnant women or ENT cases. MRI scans could not be undertaken.”

Dr Muscat called it a pity, saying that changes could have been implemented to the service had the government not decided to act unilaterally and terminate it.

“The government’s main problem is the load on Mater Dei. At the end of the day every single patient using the service offered by St James was one less patient visiting the state hospital,” Dr Muscat said.