Health minister Katya Ivkova toured refurbished wards and new equipment at Burgas University Hospital today. The work was done over the past few months with money from the health ministry under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, from Burgas council, from the hospital's own budget and from donations.
This report follows our earlier story on the health minister's visit to Burgas University Hospital, announced by the health ministry and the hospital.
The minister watched the hospital's new CT scanner at work. It gives faster, more accurate scans with less radiation, which matters for children and babies. She also saw the rooms being prepared for a second scanner. Under the same plan, Burgas University Hospital is getting two CT scanners in total, plus ultrasound machines, hospital beds, patient monitors and equipment for the children's wards.
In the maternity ward, the minister looked at two new family rooms, where mother, baby and a companion stay together after the birth. The renovation and furnishing were done by building firms that belong to the Burgas Chamber of Builders. Donors helped with money, materials and labour on the repairs themselves.
The tour went on through the revamped main lobby of the surgical building, the maternity ward and parts of the hospital's other refurbished wards. The minister saw the renovated rooms in the anaesthesiology and intensive care unit, where some of the equipment has been replaced. She also looked at the updated gastroscopy room in the gastroenterology department. She visited the entrances to the surgical building and the emergency department, as well as the renovated forensic medicine unit with its new equipment and cold storage rooms.
"I'm glad to see there's a community here that's able to give," Ivkova said. She said the new rooms are comfortable and put mothers at ease. The minister thanked the local community for helping make the hospital better and said she expects more patients to turn to Burgas University Hospital as the region's leading hospital.
Dr Miroslav Obreykov, the hospital's executive director, said the partnership between the state, Burgas University Hospital, Burgas council and the local community is helping improve conditions for patients and staff alongside the new equipment. He pledged that the renovation of the wards and the delivery of modern equipment would carry on in stages.
The minister toured the hospital with Dr Obreykov, board of directors chair Vladimira Kostova, Burgas mayor Dimitar Nikolov, regional governor Diko Dikov and his deputies Georgi Madzharov and Veselin Anestev. Also there were MPs Prof. Dr Vladimir Gonchev, Prof. Rumyana Avramova, Vitko Valchev, Fatme Ramadan and Galya Vasileva, along with people from academic and health institutions and donors.
Work on these investments began under Prof. Dr Vladimir Gonchev's term as executive director of Burgas University Hospital.