The Minister of Health, Ana Paula Martins, visited the site of what is expected to become the Algarve Central Hospital today, Monday 26th January, celebrating the occasion with the release of an order approving the public–private partnership model for its construction - now we await the public tender.
With a Government investment of €426.6 million, the new facility is intended to address the limitations of two existing regional hospitals in Faro and Portimão, as well as to respond to the needs that come along with population growth, and the additional pressure generated by tourism.
However, despite the promises, the future of the long-awaited hospital remains somewhat undefined. Monday’s formalisation confirms the Government’s investment, but local leaders remain cautious after decades of delayed promises, and say confidence will only be restored once bricks begin to be laid.
“Until I see the building taking shape, we have to remain cautious,” said the mayor of Faro, António Pina, during the ceremony held at the Algarve Stadium, just a few hundred metres from where the Algarve Central Hospital will be built.
In addition to fulfilling a long-standing promise to Algarve residents, the minister signed the strategic agreements framing the wider project. These involve collaboration between entities such as the Ministry of Health, the Algarve Local Health Unit (ULS Algarve), the municipalities of Faro and Loulé, and the intermunicipal association responsible for providing the land for the construction of the facility.
The signing of the agreements paves the way for the launch of the public tender, to be overseen by the Central Administration of the Health System (ACSS), which, according to the minister, will be issued “very shortly”.
The expenditure authorisation has already been approved by the Council of Ministers, being given a thumbs-up in early January, and formalised with the publication of the order in the state’s official gazette (Diário da República). The total investment of €426.6 million will be spread over a 27-year period, with a maximum annual commitment of €50 million.
“After 20 years and eight foundation-stone ceremonies, construction of the Algarve Central Hospital will finally move forward,” said Health Minister Ana Paula Martins.
She recalled that the need for this infrastructure has been identified as a priority for almost two decades, since February 2006. Despite the administrative progress now finally being confirmed, the minister stressed that the process remains lengthy and demanding. “This is a project that will, at the very least, take six years to complete,” she said.
The timetable includes the launch of the public tender, assessment of bids, selection of the private partner, contract signing, the construction phase, and oversight by the Court of Auditors.
According to information presented at the ceremony, the new hospital is expected to become operational within four to five years, taking into account both administrative and construction phases.
Although the project will be built under a PPP (private-public partnership) model, there are no plans to transfer the provision of healthcare services. “For now, this does not include clinical management,” the minister clarified, assuring that care delivery will remain the responsibility of the National Health Service (SNS).
In response to regional scepticism, the minister also promised regular updates on the project’s progress. “We will communicate, as we are doing with the Hospital de Todos os Santos, what is happening at each stage of this project. Those are the real building blocks of construction,” she said.
While the signing of the agreements does not mark the start of construction, it does, for the first time in two decades, establish a defined financing model, an administrative timetable, and a broad institutional commitment.
The Algarve Central Hospital will be located at Parque das Cidades, between the municipalities of Loulé and Faro, next to the Algarve Regional Public Health Laboratory. It has been designed to serve the entire region, concentrating in one place many of the separate specialised healthcare services currently provided by the hospitals of Faro and Portimão.
The facility will have 742 beds, 18 operating theatres, 74 outpatient consultation rooms, 10 delivery rooms and 80 day-hospital stations, in addition to highly complex diagnostic and treatment equipment. “We are talking about a state-of-the-art hospital,” the Minister of Health said.
The hospital will also incorporate palliative care, as well as adult psychiatry, and child and adolescent psychiatry services.
The caution voiced by the mayor of Faro was echoed by the mayor of Loulé, Telmo Pinto, who acknowledged the accumulated frustration over the years. “Algarvians are sceptical because of the dissatisfaction that comes from decades of inadequate responses,” he said.
According to Mayor Pinto, “many Algarvians feel outraged”, linking this sentiment to years of broken promises and a perception of unequal treatment of the region. “Algarvians feel they contribute a great deal and receive far less than what is necessary,” he added.
“Today, we want this to stop being just a dream,” he concluded.
Source: LUSA / Barlavento
