Cyprus races to complete emergency care reform by November deadline

Local emergencyhealthTop News Cyprus races to complete emergency care reform by November deadline Cyprus Races To Complete Emergency Care Reform By November Deadline Relevant News Cyprus races to complete emergency care reform by November deadline 24 July 2026 Things to do on Friday, July 24 24 July 2026 Scorching 39C heat and gusty winds forecast across Cyprus today 24 July 2026 Marilena Panayi 24 July 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber Cyprus’s reform of emergency and pre-hospital care is in full swing, with preparations due to be completed by November, philenews understands. The Health Ministry, the State Health Services Organisation (SHSO/OKYPY), the ambulance service and other state departments involved are now racing to complete the processes needed both for the new National Ambulance Authority to begin operating and for the transfer of ambulances to it, as well as for the creation of a Poison Control Centre, which will operate on an organised basis in Cyprus for the first time. The undertaking includes transferring staff, vehicles and equipment from OKYPY to the new Authority, transferring contracts, and settling OKYPY’s financial claims. At a meeting at the Health Ministry yesterday, responsibilities were assigned and instructions given to ensure everything is ready by January 1, 2027, as the relevant legislation provides. Separately, the source material states that the Authority’s official launch is set for December 31, 2026; philenews is presenting both dates as given, without reconciling the apparent discrepancy. Work on staffing and equipping the Poison Centre is already under way. Under the legislation, the centre will cover the whole of Cyprus and operate 24 hours a day, providing free information and guidance to doctors, other health professionals, accident and emergency departments, hospitals and members of the public on managing poisoning incidents. The centre is expected to fill a significant gap in how Cyprus handles poisoning cases involving medicines, chemical substances, agricultural products, household products such as cleaning agents, plants, mushrooms, poisonous animals and other factors. Through direct telephone guidance, it will be able to assess the level of risk in each case and advise on initial measures, including whether an ambulance needs to be dispatched or the person taken to an emergency department. For it to operate safely and effectively, the centre needs adequately trained staff, scientific oversight, access to specialised toxicology databases, cooperation protocols with hospitals and laboratories, and a technical link to the emergency response management system. Private companies interested in routine transfers Interest has begun emerging from the private sector ahead of the National Ambulance Authority’s launch, with ambulance service companies said to have already contacted the Health Ministry asking about the application process and how to secure the required licence. The licensing process is based on the new legislation, which creates a Registry of Registered Ambulance Service Providers and Registered Ambulance Vehicles. Under the plan, licensed private companies will mainly handle simple, scheduled patient transfers, including trips to and from patients’ homes, hospitals, diagnostic centres, rehabilitation units, care homes and palliative care centres, in cases where the patient does not need urgent pre-hospital intervention. The aim is to separate routine transfers from genuine emergencies in practice. Once the new framework takes effect, all private ambulances serving private hospitals will undergo checks and inspections covering vehicle suitability and condition, available equipment, vehicle category, crew composition, staff certification and insurance cover. Agreements and outstanding issues over ambulance transfers According to information gathered, yesterday’s meeting at the Health Ministry distributed responsibilities among those involved, with each service taking on a specific part of the reform to complete according to its own timeline, in any case before November. Timely completion is considered necessary to allow time for final checks and administrative arrangements ahead of the Authority’s official operation. One of the most significant and complex issues concerns staff transfers. Ambulance service employees currently have different employment statuses, requiring different handling. Public servants currently on secondment to OKYPY will have their secondment ended and return to the Health Ministry. Staff employed under OKYPY contracts will be transferred to the new Authority through the procedures set out in the legislation, as will hourly-paid staff. A parallel process is under way to transfer ambulances, other vehicles, medical equipment and materials currently used by the ambulance service. Under the legislation, OKYPY will hand over the equipment, materials and vehicles it holds to the National Authority, with an agreement to be concluded between the Health Ministry and OKYPY for the transfer, and OKYPY compensated from the state budget. Discussions are understood to be considering whether OKYPY might retain some vehicles, since it intends to continue carrying out simple or scheduled patient transfers itself. No final decision has been made, or at least no official position has been stated. Also outstanding is the accreditation the ambulance service secured while operating under OKYPY, with officials examining whether that accreditation can legally transfer with the service to the Health Ministry, or whether a new evaluation process will be required. Contracts with the HIO, CUT and other bodies Also significant is the question of contracts OKYPY currently holds on behalf of the ambulance service, including agreements with the Health Insurance Organisation (HIO) and other bodies such as the Cyprus University of Technology (CUT) for its IT system. Transferring these contracts will require examining whether legal obstacles arise that need to be overcome. The compensation OKYPY will seek The financial side of the reform also remains open. OKYPY argues that it has allocated significant funds over the past six years to strengthen the ambulance service, and should therefore be compensated for the assets and investments being transferred to the new National Ambulance Authority. Costing is expected to be completed in autumn, and in any case before the November deadline. It will then need to be agreed which assets are transferred, at what valuation, and what amount will be paid to OKYPY from the state budget. The ambulance service’s current internal hierarchy will be maintained even after the National Authority begins operating, according to the source material. 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