The healthcare centre in the town of Kruja, a building that had not undergone restoration over the past 20 years and lacked a series of services, has been returned to local residents after having been completely transformed. The newly-reconstructed healthcare centre, which offers now a range of services and the latest international standards in primary health care for around 15,000 local residents, has been completely transformed recently thanks to a government investment worth 26 million lek.
Prime Minister Edi Rama and the Minister of Health and Social Protection, Ogerta Manastirliu, visited the healthcare centre completely transformed under the national program designed to reconstruct and rehabilitate over 300 health centres all over the country.
“This is the 180th healthcare centre already complete as part of the national program on construction of 300 health centres around the country. The facility has a capacity that has now become fully operational, including whole team of doctors, nurses and medical workers. The building has been rehabilitated to meet best standards. Work to construct the remaining 120 new healthcare centre all over the country has already started. The rehabilitation program will go on, not only to tackle infrastructure aspects, but also aspects regarding training of the medical personnel,” Health Minister said.
Given that Kruja is currently a hotbed of the Covid-19 infection in Albania, Health Minister said that entire medical personnel of healthcare centres are at the frontlines of the efforts to cope with the situation.
“Medical personnel at the primary health care centres are doing laudable work as part of the efforts to track down the Covid-19 cases. It is known the fact that Kruja has been a hotbed of the infection. Family doctors are doing a great job in tracing and treating Covid-19 patients with mild symptoms or asymptomatic individuals, collaborating with all health care structures, the health emergency service and hospitals,” she said.
Prime Minister Rama and Health Minister Manastirliu also inspected the ongoing work to reconstruct municipal hospital “Stefan Gjoni” in Kruja, a project as part of the Reconstruction Program to rebuild the health institutions that sustained damages due to the devastating earthquake that hit the country on November 26 last year. The Program includes 10 health institutions. The investment to reconstruct and reorganize this hospital is estimated worth 2.7 million euros.
“The design is now complete and the procedures for the reconstruction of all quake-affected hospitals will be launched very soon. The reconstruction program will involve complete rehabilitation with all required components. The novelty is that the new hospital will also house Kruja maternity ward, as the internal services will be rationalized. The hospital will have a 90-bed capacity and will provide all health services. The hospital will also house three operating theatres, including delivery rooms, and it will offer a wide range of previously missing services, given also the fact that no rehabilitation investments have been carried out over the years. The most recent investment in this hospital was implemented back in 2007, which included only some aesthetic improvements of the building,” Manastirliu said.
The Municipality of Kruja has been one of the worst-hit areas due to the Nov 26 earthquake and therefore, in addition to the four healthcare centres projected to be built in Tapiza, Larushk, Berbere and Bushnesh, health facilities in Borizana and Bubq will also undergo a full reconstruction project. The Ministry of Health and Social Protection has also completed the design of the new municipal hospitals in Kruja, Kurbin, the cardiology ward and the General Paediatric Service at the University Hospital Centre in Tirana.
