The Ministry of Health of the Government of the Canary Islands announces the improvement measures planned in the short term for the northern area of Tenerife which focus on increasing the care capacity of both the Hospital del Norte and the health centers in the basic health areas of the region. In this sense, the managers of Primary Care of Tenerife and the University Hospital of Canary IslandsJesús Delgado and Adasat Goya, respectively, met last Friday with the objective of presenting a plan to the Directorate of the Canarian Health Service.
Coordinated care actions aim to expand healthcare provision in the north of Tenerife, among which is contemplated the increase in surgical activity and the offer of treatments at the Hospital del Norte, in Icod de Los Vinos. These initiatives require coordination between Primary Care and the reference hospital center for the northern area of the island.
Among the actions planned for the Hospital del Norte is iIncrease the number of consultations, with the possibility of expanding the offer of these in the afternoon, as well as the surgical activity, both in number and complexity of the interventions. To achieve this, the provision of the necessary means of sterilization and blood bankas well as the transfer of the laboratory to these facilities.
It is also being planned increase the offer of diagnostic imagingwith Magnetic Resonance or CT, as well as the offer of treatments in the day hospital, which allows a response tailored to the needs of the reference population.
Specialized consultations and hospitalization at home
With respect to Specialized Care Centers (CAE)In both Puerto de la Cruz and La Orotava, consultations are expected to increase and the possibility of also carrying them out in the afternoon is being considered.
Regarding joint activities between primary and hospital care, work is being done on coordinated planning between the Home Care Vehicles (VAD) unit of Primary Care and Hospitalization at Home (HADO) to provide assistance to vulnerable people over 65 years of age that present a non-delayable urgency.
To this end, the HUC also proposes increase the offer of hospitalization at home to respond to the north of the island. This service represents an extension of hospital admission to the home so that the patient can continue to be admitted at home under the daily supervision of the hospital’s health professionals and always taking into account the profile of the most suitable patient to receive treatment at home.
At this time, we are working on joint formulas to respond to various pathological processeswith agreed upon action protocols, which allow the addition of the +AP Primary Care project.
To this end, work is being done on the development of protocols between the two managements, including those of care for highly common pathologies such as musculoskeletal. Likewise, progress is being made in another protocol for the care of highly complex chronic patients and, in Primary Care, the number of consultation physiotherapists will be increased in health centers in the north of the island.
Reinforcement of tests in Emergencies
In relation to the emergency carethe Continuing Care Points of health centers and the Normal Emergency Services are being provided with ultrasound machines, developing in parallel the training processes for Family Medicine professionals for their management.
Work is also being done between both levels for the implementation of the immediate and immediate analysis points (POCT), which allows testing to be carried out at the point of care, both at continuing care points and in normal emergency services.
Likewise, it will facilitate the availability of requesting simple X-rays in centers close to emergency pointswhich allows greater resolution in diagnosis and treatment, thus avoiding unnecessary and avoidable trips to hospital emergency services.
