Limassol general hospital is set for a €23 million facelift, which will see its A&E department expanded, new units set up and its overall space renovated, state health services (Okypy) said on Tuesday.

The works will take 32 months to complete as part of a project aimed at modernising and improving its infrastructure.

Limassol general hospital is the second biggest hospital in Okypy’s network and the works will cost €23m plus VAT.

Once the works are over, the facility will offer improved health services and better quality of services to patients, Okypy said.

The plan entails expanding the A&E department from its existing 1,245m² to 1,795m². Additionally, the number of beds will increase from 18 to 42.

There will also be more units, such as a radiation room, cardiac resuscitation room, short-stay room, small operating room, multi-trauma resuscitation room, room for paediatric patients and an ultrasound room.

The first floor will also have a new intensive care unit which will be directly connected to the surgical ward for easier transport of patients.

The unit will have a separate entrance for patients and the public and will span 1,615m² with 17 beds and two isolation rooms.

On the same floor a new dialysis unit will be created which will be 1,130m² and will include 34 dialysis machines, two Yellow Unit stations, patient and staff changing rooms, sanitary facilities and support areas. The two projects are part of the Recovery and Resilience Plan.

The project will also include the construction of the new Infectious Diseases Unit with a total size of 240m², which will be located close to the ICU and the Day Care Unit. The unit will have an independent entrance, which will receive potential patients with infectious diseases (including Covid) who will be screened and if confirmed to have an infectious disease they will be temporarily housed in the isolation wards. I

According to Okypy, the unit has been designed taking into account the British Health Building Note (HBN) and Health Technical Memorandum (HTM) standards.

In the hospital’s south corner, where the existing blood dialysis unit is housed, a new unit for patients recovering from cancer treatments will be set up. It will have 18 beds, two sanitation facilities for disabled persons and a nursing unit.

Finally, other areas of the hospital will also be upgraded, contributing to the improvement of its overall appearance, such as the replacement of floors, ceilings, internal doors, partitions, windows and overall sanitary conditions, Okypy said.