Labour union Peo’s medical worker’s branch criticised Okypy’s reorganisation plan for Athalassa hospital, warning that overcrowding and staffing gaps endanger patient care and staff safety.
The union said the plan “does not provide solutions to what emerged after the static studies that preceded it, which make the buildings structurally unsound.”
It lamented the decision to cram “30 or more patients into specific wards that are already operating at their limits” as adding “enormous burden and responsibility to the employees” while reducing quality of care.
Peo further drew to attention the absence of detailed staffing arrangements for patient transfers and the lack of timetables for the second construction phase.
“We will not become complicit in the degradation of care services, nor will we compromise on the safety of patients and employees,” the union said.
The union urged Okypy “to quickly complete the plan in a way that takes into account the safety of patients and employees and immediately begins work on the second phase of the hospital.”
Concerns over Athalassa’s infrastructure have persisted for years, with mental health nurses having previously reported wards running at 120 per cent capacity, with unsafe buildings and staff shortages.
Unions Pasyno and Pasyki previously warned that continued use of structurally unsound buildings placed patients and staff “at immediate and real risk,” calling for urgent protective measures and a modern replacement hospital.
Akel described conditions at Athalassa as “shameful and dangerous,” urging the government to complete phase two of construction without delay to ensure safe, dignified care.
Health minister Neophytos Charalambides chaired a meeting last month reviewing structural concerns and instructed the immediate implementation of all necessary safety measures, while initiating procedures for the second phase of the new hospital to resolve chronic problems definitively.
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