Steward Healthcare, set to take over the 30-year concession to run three State hospitals, will be on the ground and ready to meet workers “in the coming days”, Health Minister Chris Fearne said.

Times of Malta reported last week that details on the deal between Vitals Global Healthcare and Steward had yet to be disclosed to unions representing workers in the health sector despite the change in operator being announced over a month ago.

Mr Fearne said yesterday he held “brief talks” with the unions on the matter.

Pressed on whether healthcare workers had met the new operator, he said that would happen in the coming days when the US company Steward was “on the ground”.

“In the coming days, once Steward is physically on the ground and in our hospitals, there will be a series of meetings with all the unions, both to ensure that what was agreed upon in the past months is confirmed and also to iron out any difficulties,” Mr Fearne said.

The contract is signed and so is binding

Yesterday, he dismissed a suggestion by the doctors’ union for the government to immediately withdraw its consent for the transfer to the American operator, insisting the deal was done.

“The contract is signed and so is binding, hence, it cannot be unilaterally stopped without valid reasons,” Mr Fearne said.

“The contract states that Vitals have every right, with the government’s consent, to sell their shares. What is happening is all in line with the contract,” he added.

A few days before Christmas the government said Vitals had signed an agreement with Steward to sell the concession covering the running of St Luke’s, Karin Grech and the Gozo General hospitals. Mr Fearne described the new operators as the “real thing”.

When asked why taxpayers should feel safe in the knowledge the new operators were the “real thing”, especially following reports that Vitals had failed to honour all major milestones stipulated in the contract, Mr Fearne said the government had set up a specialised unit to monitor hospital standards.

“The unit ensures that the services being offered at these three hospitals is of the highest standards. We have key performance indicators and technical people making sure the standards of these services remain high and, if possible, even improve,” Mr Fearne said.