Cyprus health ministry reports unlicensed treatment centre to police
One private centre that carried out procedures the ministry says belong only in licensed hospitals is now with police and the legal service, the health minister said.
One centre providing treatments that the health ministry believes belong only in licensed private hospitals has been referred to the police and the legal service, Health Minister Neophytos Charalambides said on Wednesday, as reported by Cyprus Mail.
Speaking after a cabinet meeting at the presidential palace, he said the ministry is assessing what services such centres actually offer and will decide on further steps once those findings are in. The centres came to attention through their own advertising, ministry inquiries and complaints.
Charalambides said some procedures are invasive enough that they should not take place outside a licensed hospital, since hospital rules exist to protect patients. Asked about plasmapheresis, which filters a patient's blood, he noted that private hospitals are registered and licensed by the ministry, while these cases are the reverse.
What it means for residents
If you are offered a medical procedure at a centre rather than a hospital, the licence question is now a live one, and it is worth asking before you book or pay.
- Check before you commit. Ask whether the provider is licensed by the health ministry for the specific procedure, not just for general consultations.
- Invasive treatments. Procedures the ministry classes as suitable only for licensed private hospitals may not be legally available elsewhere.
- Report concerns. Complaints have already fed into the ministry's review, so patients who suspect a provider is overstepping can raise it with the ministry.
This text is written from the source article and is not a translation of it.
