New Hospital in Puntarenas Begins Operations Amid Staffing Challenges
Hospital Monseñor Víctor Manuel Sanabria receives first patients; staffing shortages limit operations.
On January 24, the newly constructed Hospital Monseñor Víctor Manuel Sanabria in Barranca, Puntarenas, Costa Rica, officially began receiving patients.
The first patient, Ailany Chaves Villarreal, a week-old newborn, was admitted into the neonatology service early in the morning, marking the hospital’s operational commencement.
The hospital commenced the transfer of patients from its predecessor, significantly damaged during the Nicoya earthquake in September 2012.
The hospital, a $225 million investment, is expected to service a range of medical departments, including surgery, pediatrics, gynecology, obstetrics, and neonatology.
Over the following days, patients from intensive care units and emergency services were scheduled to be relocated to the new facility.
By January 27, all medical consultations, emergencies, and procedures are to be conducted at the new site.
Randall Álvarez Juárez, the hospital’s medical director, stated that the patient transfer resulted from meticulous planning over several months.
Ambulances and buses from the Costa Rican Social Security Fund (CCSS) facilitated the relocation.
Despite the facility's state-of-the-art infrastructure, unions have raised concerns about significant staffing shortages that could affect its operations.
The National Union of Employees of the Caja (UNDECA) highlighted that due to insufficient staffing, only five of the hospital’s 14 operating rooms and seven of its 24 intensive care beds would be operational initially.
Early estimates by CCSS indicated a need for 818 additional positions to fully staff the hospital.
However, only 233 positions were approved last year, with plans to add another 300 by early 2025.
Gustavo Picado Chacón, CCSS’s financial manager, in September noted that the new positions required an investment of ¢1.396 billion, with 107 designated for nursing staff.
The staffing requirements were determined based on a study conducted by the Personnel Directorate, which forecasted that 340 positions should be dedicated to nursing, 319 for support services, and 49 for administrative services.
The first patient, Ailany Chaves Villarreal, a week-old newborn, was admitted into the neonatology service early in the morning, marking the hospital’s operational commencement.
The hospital commenced the transfer of patients from its predecessor, significantly damaged during the Nicoya earthquake in September 2012.
The hospital, a $225 million investment, is expected to service a range of medical departments, including surgery, pediatrics, gynecology, obstetrics, and neonatology.
Over the following days, patients from intensive care units and emergency services were scheduled to be relocated to the new facility.
By January 27, all medical consultations, emergencies, and procedures are to be conducted at the new site.
Randall Álvarez Juárez, the hospital’s medical director, stated that the patient transfer resulted from meticulous planning over several months.
Ambulances and buses from the Costa Rican Social Security Fund (CCSS) facilitated the relocation.
Despite the facility's state-of-the-art infrastructure, unions have raised concerns about significant staffing shortages that could affect its operations.
The National Union of Employees of the Caja (UNDECA) highlighted that due to insufficient staffing, only five of the hospital’s 14 operating rooms and seven of its 24 intensive care beds would be operational initially.
Early estimates by CCSS indicated a need for 818 additional positions to fully staff the hospital.
However, only 233 positions were approved last year, with plans to add another 300 by early 2025.
Gustavo Picado Chacón, CCSS’s financial manager, in September noted that the new positions required an investment of ¢1.396 billion, with 107 designated for nursing staff.
The staffing requirements were determined based on a study conducted by the Personnel Directorate, which forecasted that 340 positions should be dedicated to nursing, 319 for support services, and 49 for administrative services.
