“The public should not be afraid that there are insufficient controls at medical centers that do not adhere to protocols and appropriate medical practices,” said the senior official at the Ministry of Health, Karolina Stylianou.
Speaking on state radio, Ms. Stylianou noted that when the Ministry receives complaints about medical centers that fail to follow protocols or violate the law, it intervenes immediately.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
It did the same, she noted, in the case of a center in Larnaca that had performed a bloodletting procedure a few years ago on a female patient, who was subsequently hospitalized in the intensive care unit of a private hospital.
“We were aware of this incident. This was a clinic that had been investigated shortly before the incident occurred. Various actions were taken at different levels, and officials from the Ministry of Health visited the center. A complaint was also filed with the police regarding this facility on two occasions concerning potential violations of the law.”
He explained that “this center operated as part of a medical clinic. It did not have a license as a private hospital, which is why we took action with the police.”
He noted that the center in question had ceased operating under its former name; however, he did not know whether the center is currently operating under a different name.
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She also emphasized that, to protect ongoing investigations, the Ministry will not disclose the names of medical centers that may be under investigation.
Ms. Stylianou urged citizens to notify the Ministry of Health and provide information regarding centers that use their equipment for inappropriate treatments.
SEE ALSO: A Shady Past for Plasmapheresis in Cyprus as Well: The Center Was Operating Under a New Name
The complaint regarding the patient
It should be recalled that, as Dr. Marinos Sotiriou, Director of the American Medical Center, stated on the Alpha News program, the woman, who underwent plasmapheresis at an unauthorized center operating illegally in the Larnaca district and suffered extensive blood clots throughout her body, had to be hospitalized two years ago in the Intensive Care Unit of the American Medical Center.
As she reported, the center in question was established and operated during the COVID-19 pandemic and promised treatments to patients experiencing long-term symptoms from COVID-19.
READ ALSO: Shocking revelations from Dr. Sotiriou: A woman ended up in the ICU with blood clots after undergoing plasmapheresis at an unapproved center
Meanwhile, in a statement released on Friday, the police reported that in November 2023, it had received a letter from the Ministry of Health regarding a patient who was hospitalized after developing serious complications, which were allegedly linked to a specific treatment the patient had received.
“The case was investigated by the police, and once the investigation was completed, the file was forwarded to the Legal Service. The review did not yield sufficient evidence to establish criminal offenses.”
SEE ALSO: “Insufficient evidence was found”: The police statement regarding the patient who was hospitalized in the ICU following a blood transfusion
