Das General-Hospital in Nicosia wird durch das noch größere Verkehrschaos seit Eröffnung des Ikea tangiert. Operationen müssen verschoben werden, weil das Personal oft nicht rechtzeitig vor Ort ist und der Krankenhaus-Parkplatz wird von Ikea-Shoppern in Beschlag genommen:
OPERATIONS at the Nicosia General Hospital are being postponed and cancelled, due to staff not getting to the hospital on time as a result of severe traffic congestion.
Doctor Petros Petrides, Vice President of the Government Doctors’ Union, told the Cyprus Mail yesterday that the problem was, “a huge one, which is getting worse. We are seeing delays for surgeries, with many surgeons being put in a very difficult position. They are arriving late, in an agitated state of mind and straight away need to calm down before they can perform procedures.”
He added that the traffic problem was at its peak from 7.30 to 8.30am and then again from midday until 3pm.
“In the mornings, staff are having to leave their homes much earlier than they normally would in an effort to get to work on time,” he said. “I don’t know what the solution is, but something needs to be done, for sure.”
The hospital’s car park has been constantly full ever since IKEA opened across the road last Thursday. Genuine patients and those visiting hospitalised friends and family are finding it increasingly difficult to find a space.
In several cases, arguments have broken out, with shoppers returning to their cars confronted.
The head of the Nicosia Ambulance Service, Andreas Kouppis, explained that ever since the superstore had opened, ambulance drivers had been complaining that they could not get to and from their destinations in good time due to the massive congestion.
“Obviously, this is a very serious problem which is going to get even worse when the Mall of Cyprus opens at the end of the month. Already, I’ve noticed a lot of people parking illegally and I’ve even seen some driving the wrong way down one-way roads.”
The President of the Nursing Union, George Flourentzos, was quoted in Alithia saying the situation had reached a critical point last Friday, with most of the staff on the afternoon shift delayed, meaning those who had worked during the night and the morning having to stay on for longer.
The hospital’s Medical head Dr Evagoras Nicolaides told the Mail that, “with such a huge business opening opposite, it was obvious that traffic problems in the area would affect us.”
He added that the hospital’s original plans included several additional roads, which would serve the facility, “but these have either been delayed or cancelled and that is where the problem lies.
“We desperately need more roads,” he stated.
Commenting on ambulance delays, he said that all vehicles, “have alternative, Plan B routes that they should follow.”
But he categorically denied that lives were being put in danger, due to operations being cancelled.
“This really is not the case as we have resident doctors who are not affected by what is happening on the roads. If there are cases where surgeries have to be carried out immediately, there is always a qualified doctor on site.”
Yesterday morning, the traffic around the hospital was light. “I arrived at 8am and there really wasn’t that much traffic,” said Sophia Kannari-Strachan, a patient waiting at the outpatients’ department. “My appointment was at 9am, but I came early as I knew that I had to queue up at the pharmacy for some medication. In the end, the doctor saw me at 10am.”
A couple of others also claimed not to have been affected by the traffic, but that wasn’t the case with Marios Lytrides. “I had an appointment last Thursday at midday and didn’t realise that IKEA had opened earlier that morning,” the 27-year-old explained. “The traffic was hell and I was nearly an hour late. I’ve been coming here for the past couple of months for physiotherapy but had never been held up before so badly.”
A senior nurse at the outpatients’ department agreed, saying nursing staff were all now having to leave their homes much earlier to get in to work on time.
“With no traffic, I can be here in 20 minutes from my home in Archangelos,” she explained. “But ever since IKEA opened, my journey is taking me an average of 45 minutes.”
According to the nurse, who wished to remain anonymous, doctors are also fed up with the situation. “They tell me they are called in for an emergency, but can never make it on time.”
She also said that it was difficult to plan ahead, “as we never know when to expect patients arriving by ambulance.”
Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2007
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