The Malta Independent 10 February 2025, Monday
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Updated (2): Private hospitals express concern about MAM directives

Sunday, 12 January 2025, 08:44 Last update: about 28 days ago

Private healthcare providers on Sunday expressed concern about directives issued by the Medical Association of Malta.

DaVinci Health said Sunday it is deeply concerned by the recent directives issued by the Medical Association of Malta (MAM), instructing union members at Mater Dei Hospital to "not advise or otherwise participate in transfers to private hospitals and to admit all patients to Mater Dei."

Together with two other private healthcare service providers, DaVinci Health said it had voluntarily offered its resources to assist Mater Dei Hospital by handling minor emergency cases from its Accident & Emergency Department. This collaboration aimed to reduce patient waiting times while allowing Mater Dei's emergency team to concentrate on more critical cases. With significant investment in state-of-the-art facilities, DaVinci Health said it was fully prepared to begin providing these essential services after being awarded the contract through a public procurement process.

The timing of these directives is particularly regrettable, as they halt an initiative designed to alleviate the strain on Mater Dei Hospital during a period of peak demand caused by seasonal illnesses. With A&E waiting times already prolonged and hospital capacity stretched to its limit, these will undoubtedly impact patient care when it is most needed.

Directives should be used as a last-resort measure. We urge MAM to urgently reconsider its directive and to engage in constructive dialogue with the Ministry for Health and Active Ageing. A swift resolution to this issue is in the best interest of all patients in Malta, the hospital said.

In a separate statement, Saint James Hospital Group said that while the Group declares that it will not enter or be entertained to enter into the merits of the industrial dispute, it strongly maintains that the partnership announced by the state to partner with private hospitals  for category 3, 4 and 5 emergency services in a bid to ease waiting times at Mater Dei Hospital, is a step in the right direction.

For several years now the national healthcare system has suffered and is still suffering a considerable strain to remain sustainable and this is precisely why Saint James Hospital Group, as Malta's largest private healthcare provider, has repeatedly called on the authorities for the public and private sectors to formulate new models to encourage and foster a greater collaboration between the private healthcare sector and the state.

Such public-private partnerships are indeed beneficial to ease the pressure on the national healthcare system and reduce the strain whilst doing away with the duplication of services. Private healthcare can and should be a complementary force to public services and play an essential and important role within our national healthcare framework just as has happened in many other countries within the EU and beyond.

What is wrong in public-private partnerships to ease the pressure and reduce the strain on the national healthcare system?

Why shouldn't we, in 2025, together formulate new models to encourage and foster a greater collaboration between the private healthcare sector and the State?

Why should the public and the private healthcare sectors continue duplicating each other?

Saint James Hospital Group reiterated that such collaboration between the private healthcare sector in the form of public-private partnerships, as occurs already in other essential services delivered by the state, will create a far more efficient system that contains costs, improves accessibility for all citizens and significantly reduces waiting lists for patients.

Saint James Hospital Group said it trusted that all the involved parties ultimately have one common goal in mind, and therefore calls on the Medical Association of Malta and the authorities to actively work to resolve any differences between them and collaborate together for the welfare of the patients and the medical and supporting staff in the best interest of our healthcare system.

Meanwhile, St Thomas Hospital also reacted to the news by saying that the current situation surrounding the industrial dispute between the MAM and the Health Ministry “is unfortunate for both patients and doctors alike.”

“At St Thomas Hospital, we deeply empathise with the challenges faced by all parties involved and urge both sides to maintain open lines of communication to resolve the issue promptly and collaboratively,” a company spokesperson said in a statement.

The hospital said that it is a firm believer in the positive impact of Public Private Partnerships in alleviating the strain on the public healthcare system. In fact, more than 5,000 patients from the public healthcare system have been treated at St Thomas Hospital since 2019 through such partnerships aimed at easing the burden on Mater Dei Hospital, the hospital said.

The hospital said that over the previous 48 hours, it had treated three patients referred under the recent partnership agreement aimed at freeing up bed space at Mater Dei Hospital for more urgent and complex medical cases. “These three patient cases were relatively routine surgical emergencies, but their successful treatment freed up three much-needed beds at Mater Dei Hospital for patients with more serious medical needs,” the hospital said.

“This highlights the tangible, immediate benefits of partnerships between public and private healthcare providers. St Thomas Hospital has been an active partner in supporting the public health system for over five years, consistently delivering excellent outcomes for patients and contributing positively to the system’s overall efficiency. Our experience has shown firsthand the significant difference a well-structured public-private partnership (PPP) can make for public healthcare,” it added.

“Denying patients access to such collaborative initiatives would be both unfair and counterproductive to addressing the current pressures on Malta’s healthcare system,” the company said.

 

“We remain committed to supporting the healthcare needs of our community and hope for a swift resolution that prioritises the well-being of patients and the sustainability of our healthcare infrastructure.”



 

 


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