In Rijeka, in the presence of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Sea, Transport, and Infrastructure, Oleg Butković, the Minister of Health, Vili Beroš, the Director of the Central Financing and Contracting Agency for EU Programs and Projects (CFCA), Dragan Jelić, and other dignitaries, the establishment of the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) in the Republic of Croatia was ceremoniously marked.
“After decades, Croatia has gained a crucial component in healthcare provision – the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS). This government project, valued at 62.5 million euros, is of strategic importance to all citizens and visitors of our country, as demonstrated by two lives saved in the past two days. Through coordinated intervention of HEMS and ground emergency medical services, our ‘ambulances’ have shown not only the readiness of HEMS but also coordination with the ground team, as demonstrated during the conducted simulation exercises. It is precisely through the implementation of such a HEMS system, its integration with ground emergency medical service vehicles, and fast boats of the maritime emergency medical service, that the Republic of Croatia has joined the ranks of countries with the most advanced emergency medical service systems in Europe,” stated Minister Beroš during the ceremonial establishment of HEMS at the Rijeka Delta helipad, adding that, at this moment, Croatia ensures an optimal HEMS system across the entire territory in accordance with available resources – infrastructure, personnel, and financial, while considering meteorological-climatic conditions, topographic characteristics of the terrain, existing roads, and other relevant factors.
The newly established service operates from four bases – Osijek, Rijeka, Split, and Zagreb, thus ensuring quality, fast, and accessible emergency medical care to all citizens and visitors wherever they are, including islands, rural, remote, and inaccessible areas.
“Today’s exercises have shown that our focus is on people, thanks to the joint action of ground, air, and maritime forces. Such a model of emergency care provision is strategically important for all of us because it is not only significant for Rijeka but also for the entire Primorje-Gorski Kotar and Istria County, especially for remote places like our islands,” said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Oleg Butković, adding that, in addition to this helicopter transport, the emergency medical assistance boats at sea are of exceptional importance, which in the first three months of this year alone carried out as many as 72 patient transports, highlighting the crucial cooperation between port captaincies and emergency medical service stations. The establishment of HEMS in Croatia was guided by the best EU practices, with a special emphasis on safety and quality.
“With the establishment of HEMS, we have completed the emergency medical service and demonstrated a significant reform step and the basis for further development, not only of emergency medical services but of the healthcare system as a whole. The guiding principle of everything we do is our patients, who must be our focus, and with all our actions, we confirm that we follow the guidelines of the initiated healthcare system reform – Health comes first,” concluded Minister of Health, Vili Beroš.
Source: MMPI
