Children’s A&E to temporarily operate at Nicosia general hospital

Plans to open a new accident and emergency department specifically for children at the Makarios children’s hospital have been changed, as it was decided that it will now be operating at the Nicosia general hospital.

According to a report published by daily Phileleftheros on Thursday, the decision taken by the state health services (Okypy) to relocate the department is temporary, as Makarios hospital is currently being upgraded.

“The reason behind the relocation relates to the fact that Makarios hospital cannot yet offer specific services and treatments that an accident and emergency department for children should have,” Okypy spokesman Charalambos Charilaou told Alpha News on Thursday.

“At its new planned location inside the Nicosia general hospital, they will be seen by doctors and paediatricians without having to mix with adults.”

Doctors at Makarios hospital can currently only carry out X-rays and ultrasounds, but do not have a CT scan, an important medical tool for an accident and emergency department.

Moreover, the hospital’s laboratory does not operate on a 24-hour basis, so children’s blood test results need to be transferred and processed at the Nicosia general.

“The priority of health ministry and of Okypy is the continuous upgrading of all hospitals, in particular the Makarios children hospital, in order for it to become a model facility for families,” Charilaou said.