New specialty building at CSJH inaugurated

Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng presided over the inauguration of the new Public Health Specialty Building, an eight-floor building with 80 wards and 160 beds.

The Public Health Specialty Building is in the southwest of the Conde S. Januário Hospital (CSJH) with a gross construction area of ​​around 30,899 square meters.

The Specialty Building can also accommodate 10 intensive care beds where patients can receive extracorporeal membrane oxygenation treatments (artificial lungs), ventilator, hemodialysis and others, which significantly increases the capacity to treat serious cases.

According to the government, the new building is also equipped with a resuscitation room, negative pressure operating room, computerized axial tomography imaging examination room, and a clinical laboratory capable of treating infectious samples, together providing comprehensive medical examination and treatment.

The development of the building’s main structure cost MOP956 million.

Director of the Health Bureau, Alvis Lo, said that the aging population coupled with the prevalence of chronic diseases has led to increased demand for specialized health care by Macau residents. There has been a 50% increase in the number of patients admitted to the public hospital and a 40% increase in external consultations. 

Medical recruitment for Cotai hospital starts

The first phase of local medical recruitment for the Cotai hospital will start today.

The merit-based recruitment process will be completed within 12 days, and involves hiring approximately 90 people, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other people in other positions.

The professionals will not commence providing services until the trial operation of the Cotai hospital at the end of the year.

Lo mentioned that after the Chief Executive’s visit to Portugal, the authorities immediately began working with the local medical association to identify qualified Portuguese doctors who could come to work in Macau.

The bureau received 12 applications, eight of which were approved.

Downtrend in influenza, Covid cases

Lo has said that there has been a recent downward trend in influenza and new Covid cases. Data shows that only about 15% of samples taken from patients with respiratory symptoms were suffering from influenza, and 13% were infected with Covid. There are approximately 800 emergency department consultations at the public hospital per day, which is still slightly higher than the baseline level of 700, but has dropped from the previous peak of 1,200 to 1,300 per day during summer. Staff reporter