There are still no immediate plans to build a new helipad at Mater Dei Hospital, even though the new private managers of the Gozo State hospital have deployed a 24/7 emergency air ambulance in Gozo.
On August 6, Vitals Global Healthcare, the concessionaire awarded the management of the Gozo hospital and St Luke’s and Karin Grech hospitals, launched a helicopter air ambulance to be based at the helipad in Xewkija to start carrying passengers to Mater Dei in case of emergency.
Insisting that this was not a gimmick, Sri Ram Tumuluri, from Vitals Global Healthcare said that the Qatar-registered helicopter will improve the service between the two islands, as it will shorten the time necessary for an emergency patient to be transferred to Mater Dei.
To date, this service has been performed by the helicopters of the Armed Forces of Malta. It will now be offered by the new private service. However, despite the presence of a permanent helicopter in Gozo, patients flown out in an emergency will still have to land at the St Luke’s Hospital helipad and then be transported by ambulance to Mater Dei, as the latter is still without a helipad.
It does not make sense to transfer emergency patients to St Luke’s and then by road to Mater Dei. It would have made more sense to have a permanent helipad at Mater Dei first
“Although it is better to have a permanent helicopter in Gozo, it does not make sense to transfer emergency patients to St Luke’s and then by road to Mater Dei. It would have made more sense to have a permanent helipad at Mater Dei first,” sources close to the management at Mater Dei said.
Asked whether there are any plans for a new helipad at Malta’s main general hospital, a spokesperson for the Health Ministry said that this is still under consideration.
“The Foundation for Medical Services are working on the possibility to house a helipad on the new Mother and Child wing at Mater Dei once the construction is completed,” she said.
Works are still to start on this new wing.
Mater Dei used to have a helipad however, in 2001, the Armed Forces of Malta stopped using it when it was deemed to be unsafe for landing because of construction work nearby.
According to the ministry, plans to build a new helipad on the existing Mater Dei emergency department had to be abandoned in 2014 following the discovery of inferior concrete and other structural problems there. Since then, no progress has been made to develop a helipad elsewhere within the hospital’s boundaries.
At the same time, the Health Ministry confirmed that the use of a helicopter to carry passengers to Malta is currently infrequent, raising questions by aviation experts on the feasibility of having a helicopter permanently in Gozo. The ministry said that since January 2010, there have been just 191 flights between the two islands, an average of two a month.
However, the ministry said that the air ambulance will be more useful in the future.
“With the redevelopment of St Luke’s and the introduction of medical tourism to both Malta and Gozo, the number of emergency flights is also set to increase,” a spokeswoman said.
Vitals have been selected by the government to build a new hospital in Gozo and redevelop Karin Grech and St Luke’s hospitals, with a 30-year concession. Although the government has not yet published any contracts for the deal, it will initially pay Vitals some €55 million annually.
ivan.camilleri@timesofmalta.com