Health minister emphasises importance of strong health sector

The strengthening of the health sector and the orderly operation of the ambulance service, play the primary role for the well-being of Cypriots, Health Minister Popi Kanari said on Thursday, noting that this year there were 70,000 calls for help made to the service.

In statements during the handover ceremony of mountain rescue vehicles to the ambulance service, Kanari said that the 70,000 calls answered by the ambulance service in the year 2023 prove that it is the only rescue service in Cyprus with such a large number of responses and life-saving interventions to the citizens.

She emphasised that emergency management is often a complex situation and response mechanisms require well-planned steps and manipulations.

These incidents, she noted, require a high degree of organisation of the services, as well as an effective planning.

“Emergency treatment of patients requires military discipline, scientific flexibility and, above all, training, so that health professionals can act and react to situations as they develop, in an immediate and effective manner,” she said.

When a person’s life is threatened by disease or by violent external factors, she said, the provision of emergency pre-hospital and appropriate health care is lifesaving.

“The chain of survival begins with the recognition of the emergency and immediate activation of the system, as well as the provision of pre-hospital care at the scene of the incident, resuscitation, stabilisation and transport to the nearest and most appropriate medical centre,” she added.

Kanari also thanked Andreas Psaltis, who made the donation of the two mountain rescue vehicles.