Malta’s largest private hospital group has criticised a doctors' union decision to slam the brakes on work to send emergency patients at Mater Dei Hospital to private facilities.

The Saint James Hospital Group said it was “counterproductive” to jeopardise the plans at the implementation stage, after a “thorough public procurement process” was completed.

Saint James Hospital is one of three private hospitals roped in to the government plan to outsource some emergency services at the state-run Mater Dei Hospital.

That plan – first announced last year and brought into effect this week – is now in jeopardy after the Medical Union of Malta on Saturday instructed doctors not to refer any Mater Dei patients to private hospitals.

The union cited concerns about “patient safety” and said it was not consulted on the plans, despite the government being contractually obliged to obtain its agreement before implementing any such plans.

Health Minister Jo Etienne Abela responded by saying an “inner circle” within the union was out to settle personal “grudges” even if that meant placing patients at risk.

Saint James: Directives undermine work done

In a statement sent to Times of Malta, Saint James Hospital Group CEO Jean Claude Muscat urged the union and government to sit down and “identify practical and sustainable solutions” to safeguard patient safety.

Muscat acknowledged that the group has a financial interest in the outsourcing going ahead, but emphasised that the appeal was borne out of concern for the “immense pressure on emergency services at Mater Dei”.

The private healthcare group “already operates two successful hospitals, including two busy emergency departments, and hence our appeal is genuinely, and exclusively driven by a commitment to national interest and the need to prioritise patient care above all else,” he said.

The MAM directives “effectively undermine” all efforts made to solve existing problems, he said.

“We must prioritise the national interest and, most importantly, the needs of the thousands of patients relying on emergency services during this challenging time. Mater Dei’s emergency services are clearly facing a critical situation, and it is imperative that all stakeholders focus on practical, patient-centred solutions,” Muscat said.