DSU's Arafat: At least half of emergency wards around the country need to be modernised

At least half of the emergency departments (ED) around the country need to be modernised, head of the Department for Emergency Situations (DSU) Raed Arafat said on Friday.

Together with Mayor of District 4 Daniel Baluta, he paid a visit to the new emergency ward unit at the Bagdasar-Arseni Hospital.

"There have been several European projects that have started to modernise and I can tell you, at least, talking about half of the emergency departments around the country, we are talking here about a few dozen already, which must be modernisatised or even have extensions. These projects started some time ago with European funds, through the Ministry of Development, there are also projects, as you can see here, where local authorities get involved, there are projects that are funded by European funds, but co-financed by local authorities and, of course, by the Health Ministry. So, steps are being taken, (...) at least half of the units need certain measures," Arafat said.

According to the DSU head, the problem which arises in the future at the level of emergency ward units is the increase in the number of patients.

He added that during this period, the number of patients coming to the ER has decreased significantly. "I don't know how long it will last, now we are at about 50% of the total number that usually comes to us in the country, but in the future, an emergency unit has to be readjusted, it has to be resized every ten years, and now our challenge will be preparing the emergency ward units to receive more patients, however under the conditions in which we must prevent the spread of a virus and that means one needs to have clear routes inside the emergency unit, just as we have routes inside hospitals and that might require certain changes, including structural changes at some emergency wards," Raed Arafat explained.