Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi will inaugurate the Lm220 million Mater Dei Hospital tonight, but although the hospital is expected to be fully functional by the end of the year the public is still in the dark over when it will start offering medical services.

At the same time, agreements have still to be reached with doctors and nurses about migration and conditions of work.

Well-informed sources said wards are expected to migrate to the new hospital around the end of August and the beginning of September.

However, although the migration sequence has been finalised, the authorities are not giving any dates for when medical services will move to Mater Dei. A spokesman for the new hospital said that since the first phases might have an effect on later ones, it was imprudent to give dates, as a delay in the first stages might have a direct effect on later ones.

The migration will kick off next month with the transfer of the administration, management and support services, followed by the Outpatients Department.

The spokesman said the inpatients phase will take some three to four months on its own. The less risky departments will be the first to move, progressing to the more complicated and risky ones, including the Accident and Emergency Department and the Intensive Therapy Unit. The last phase will consist in the transfer of education facilities.

Attempts will be made to transfer the least possible number of patients from St Luke's to Mater Dei because of patient safety and to reduce inconvenience. Patients undergoing rehabilitation and social cases will not be taken to Mater Dei.

The weekly running costs of the new hospital are estimated at Lm1.2 million, Lm200,000 more than that of St Luke's Hospital. The project has cost Lm221.5 million plus VAT.

The government is being urged by the Medical Association of Malta to invest enough resources to retain its most valuable resource - medical staff. The association expressed hope that negotiations on several aspects of hospital operations would be concluded in the near future so that the hospital can start functioning.

Negotiations with the nurses' union are also ongoing and president Paul Pace said while it was good that discussions were underway, there were no guarantees that solutions would be found. The union believes that the shortage of nurses will be exacerbated once Mater Dei opens.

A scheduled bus service to the new hospital is expected to kick off on Sunday following an agreement between the Public Transport Association and the government.

Facts and figures

• The Lm220 million hospital will cost an estimated Lm1.2 million a week to run.

• The hospital's footprint is 250,000 square metres, the size of 23 football grounds.

• Apart from the 825 in-patient beds, there are also 107 day beds.

• There are 25 operating theatres - almost double the 13 at St Luke's Hospital.

• The number of staff will go up by 677 from the 3,733 at St Luke's Hospital.

• Three standby generators produce enough electricity to operate the hospital's essential parts.

• Some 6,700 of the 7,156 rooms have some form of medical equipment.

• More than 9,000 people - including representatives of trade unions, councils, professional associations, political parties, voluntary organisations and other non-governmental organisations - have visited the hospital site since 2001.

• An open weekend will be held tomorrow and on Sunday.

• The new hospital is expected to be operational within three to four months of its inauguration, the Prime Minister has announced.

• The rehabilitation services at Zammit Clapp Hospital will be temporarily moved to St Luke's Hospital once the shift to Mater Dei is completed. Boffa Hospital's oncology department will be transferred to Zammit Clapp.

Lights, cameras, sound...

Mater Dei Hospital will be bathed in different colours as a light show marks the opening of the long awaited hospital tonight.

The main entrance will be covered with big drapes, which are expected to fall on cue as Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi declares the hospital open.

The lighting, which will continue to be focused on the hospital façade after the drapes fall, was used for the reopening of the Dresden Opera House and for the Olympic Games opening ceremony in Greece.

The ceremony - which is scheduled to start just before 9 p.m. - will be broadcast live on TVM. A helicopter will be landing on the helipad and ambulance sirens will be heard in the distance toward the beginning of the ceremony, which is expected to last around an hour.

Some 150 artists, including soprano Lydia Caruana, will be taking part in the show.

Maestro Brian Schembri will conduct a string concerto while Brian Cefai will lead more than 50 chorists.

The national anthem has been adapted for the harp.

Following the ceremony, Dr Gonzi, Health Minister Louis Deguara and Parliamentary Secretary Tonio Fenech will tour the hospital.