THE AMERICAN Heart Institute (AHI) opened its state-of-the-art building on Monday. Described as “the most technologically-advanced hospital in Europe”, by one of the men behind the project, Dr Marinos Soteriou, the hospital is testimony to what can be achieved by private initiative.
The new, private hospital cost €50 million and was funded entirely by private investors who believed in the project. Compare this with the construction and equipping of the Nicosia General Hospital, which the late President Papadopoulos described as the biggest scandal in the history of the Republic, and it is blatantly obvious that the private sector does things much better than the public sector.
Of course, not everyone could raise €50m from private investors. The AHI team proved its worth over the years thanks to its excellence and commitment to the highest medical standards. This was why it was trusted by the foreign investors who backed the project. Some would argue that hospitals should not be run for profit, but how would such projects be funded if backers could not make a return on their investment? At least there is no waste when a project is funded by private money, because all spending has to be closely monitored.
It was encouraging that health minister Christos Patsalides attended Wednesday’s official opening of the hospital and applauded the private initiative. Patsalides may have had differences with the AHI in the past but on Wednesday he admitted the importance of private hospitals to raising the island’s health standards. He said: “Our goal is to bring together the public and private sectors… we will support every effort to upgrade healthcare”. The minister is correct to take this approach. If Cyprus is ever to become a regional medical centre it needs a dynamic private sector that would set high targets and attract key investment.
Perhaps the private sector could be the answer to the obstacles encountered with regard to the introduction of the national health scheme, which has been put on hold by the government because of the prohibitive costs. It may be an idea for the government to explore the possibility of pursuing a joint venture with private insurance firms that could administer the project more efficiently and economically than the state. This might not seem an ideal solution but it should be given some consideration, given that the national health scheme under its current form is unlikely to be introduced in the foreseeable future.
As the AHI has proved, the private sector could do very good things for Cyprus when it takes the initiative.
