The TRNC Health Ministry is aiming to provide health services for over a million patients under its ambitious plans for a 700-bed capacity new state hospital to be constructed in the capital.
Health Minister Dr Faiz Sucuoğlu has revealed to Cyprus Today the details of his Ministry’s new scheme – estimated to cost at least 200 million TL – which awaits a green light from Turkey in terms of funding in order to go ahead. If the scheme gets the funding, it would make it another massive project in North Cyprus.
Dr Sucuoğlu said they have completed the first two stages of the scheme – consisting of allocation of land, and looking into case studies for state hospitals in major cities. Two weeks ago 270 donuts of land – behind the BRTK national broadcasting premises – was allocated by the Interior Minister for the planned new hospital, he said.
The minister added that during the second stage, he and his team carried out site surveys which gave them the chance to look into some good case studies for state hospitals in Turkey, which he described as one of the leading countries in the world health sector. “We were informed about the state hospitals which are in line with international and EU standards during a presentation by prominent professors. This enabled us to gather important information to shape our ideas whilst drawing up the scheme,” he said. “After completing the first two stages, we are now at the final stage – securing a green light from Turkey which would allow the construction of the new state hospital.”
The construction of a 700-bed capacity state hospital is estimated to cost some 100 million TL and a further 100 million TL will be required for the purchase of high-tech equipment and all the essential facilities, he added. Dr Sucuoğlu said: “We are hoping to secure funding from Turkey to construct the hospital. To this end we will finalise our project and submit to Turkish officials seeking their approval. We are hoping to get a positive response. “If we fail to secure Turkey’s funding, then the second option will be utilisation of the built-operate-transfer model.”
“We are aiming at providing health services to over a million people in light of changes in the population within 15-20 years,” he noted, adding that the 650-bed capacity Marmara Research Hospital provides services to some 1.5 million people.
Dr Sucuoğlu aims to start his ambitious scheme in the first quarter of next year, completing it within 30 months. If the new hospital plans get the go-ahead, Dr Sucuoğlu said the TRNC government will then decide on the future of the existing state hospital – Burhan Nalbantoglu Hospital – next door to which the Health Ministry has recently “opened the Oncology Hospital”. “The existing hospital is build on a valuable area which could be used in various ways, which needs to be discussed and agreed by the government,” he said, but he added that TRNC parlament could be moved there, or it could be a rehabilitation centre or could even be used as an investment area for a shopping mall.
