Česky
The ribbon-cutting ceremony was preceded by a press conference watched by a dozen journalists, in which MUDr. Michal Průša, MBA, Director of the Hořovice Hospital, MUDr. Daniel Blažek, Head of the Children's Department of Aftercare, MUDr. Mahulena Mojžíšová, Head of the Hořovice Paediatrics, and Ing. Sotirios Zavalianis, owner of the hospital in Hořovice and Beroun. The opening of the new pavilion was attended, among others, by Dr. Ing. Jiří Peřina, Mayor of Hořovice, Martin Kupka, Deputy Governor of the Central Bohemia Region, Hořovice MP Ing. Jan Skopeček and dozens of experts in the field of medicine, representatives of local government, insurance companies, etc. (see photo gallery)
"I am very glad that the opening of the new pavilion was so successful and, most importantly, that many people appreciated our efforts to provide quality health care for chronically ill children. We are trying to make long-term investments in our hospitals to make the environment for patients as pleasant and modern as possible, including the most loving care," said Sotirios Zavalianis, the owner of the hospital in Horovice, after the event.
In 2014, Hořovice Hospital became the first healthcare facility in the Czech Republic to open a specialised ward for chronically ill paediatric patients. The existing 6 beds were far from enough to cover the demand for this type of specialised care, so the management of Hořovice Hospital decided to expand the capacity of the NICU to 13 beds. The completely new pavilion, which was created for this purpose, was created on the basis of recommendations of experts, but also according to the specific requirements and experience of doctors and nurses in Hořovice, which they have gathered during the 4 years of functioning of the NIP department. The new beds will start to be occupied during June.
The ward is intended for patients with different types of diagnoses, who are united by the fact that they are very seriously, sometimes even incurably ill. The length of stay of young patients in the ward ranges from a few months to years. Their illnesses affect their basic life functions and therefore require more or less constant support through the state-of-the-art technology that the ward is equipped with. The cost of building the new pavilion exceeded CZK 76 million.
The needs of families with a terminally ill child are very broad and include not only medical, but also psychological and social care. That is why palliative care is also a multidisciplinary care. The child and his or her family are cared for by a range of professionals from different fields, from doctors to social workers. Unfortunately, this type of care is not sufficiently anchored in the health and social care system in our country, and it is slightly different in each region. Thanks to close cooperation between the two departments of the Hořovice Hospital, i.e. the Children's Department and the NIP Department, plans are being made for the future establishment of a centre that would provide families with terminally ill children with comprehensive counselling and care in one place.
