A Fresh Start also in healthcare with a network of new hospitals and a new centre promoting a better lifestyle

A new Nationalist Government will build new hospitals in both Malta and Gozo, upgrade Mater Dei Hospital to meet growing demand and construct the new General Hospital long promised to the people of Gozo. This will be complemented by greater investment in community care, mental health and the fight against cancer.

PN Leader Alex Borg yesterday presented 10 proposals for the healthcare sector, including an innovative plan to establish a high-quality centre promoting a better lifestyle to improve both physical and mental health.

These proposals add to others already announced by the Opposition to ensure that Maltese and Gozitan citizens receive the healthcare services they deserve:

1.                 Build new hospitals in Malta and Gozo

• Construct a brand-new hospital in the northern part of Malta;
• Expand the Paola Hub and transform it into a new hospital;
• Upgrade Mater Dei Hospital to meet increasing demand, improve patient care, and provide staff with an adequate working environment;
• Build a new General Hospital in Gozo — a promise long made by Labour but never delivered.

2. Develop a high-quality centre promoting a better lifestyle

In addition to building new hospitals, the PN is introducing an innovative healthcare proposal through the creation of a centre promoting a better lifestyle – a structural reform addressing a long-standing gap: a new facility dedicated to prevention, early intervention, and rehabilitation. This National Healthcare Park –  Lifestyle and Rehabilitation Centre – would act as the first line of defence against disease and a bridge back to health after hospital care.

3. Introduce a process to eliminate waiting times for hospital operations

4. Expand rehabilitation and intermediate care services outside acute hospitals, ensuring that patients who do not require intensive care do not occupy acute beds, thereby improving recovery times and system flow

5. Provide community-based mental health services, with modern facilities and support also extended to schools.

6. Increase investment in healthcare workers, including better conditions, career progression, training, and salaries.

7. Introduce a unified digital medical record system and a “digital front door” for healthcare services.

8. Strengthen primary health centres to offer urgent care, diagnostics, and minor procedures in one location, with extended opening hours.

9. Ensure coordinated discharge planning and community follow-up, so that patients continue receiving care after leaving hospital.

10. Commit to providing all cancer medicines prescribed by consultants free of charge, eliminating the need for patients to struggle to access treatment.

The first two pillars — the network of new hospitals and the development of a high-quality lifestyle centre — will function as one integrated system: hospitals focusing on high-quality acute care, and a centre dedicated to improving people’s quality of life.

This network will ensure a fair distribution of services, reduce pressure on Mater Dei Hospital, and improve access to healthcare close to where people live, with a hospital in every region of the country.

The PN aims to deliver A Fresh Start to our country also in healthcare – a Fresh Start that this country is yearning for.