(10 June 2016) Cooperation in the health sector has strengthened between Italy and Albania. The Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama recently inaugurated new surgical services at the”Mother Teresa” University Hospital in Tirana as part of the agreement between the Umbria Region and the Republic of Albania. The project has a budget of € 14 million and includes the construction of a sterilization centre and 17 sub-centres throughout the country, more than 50,000 surgical procedures performed by 555 surgeons in 153 operating rooms of 40 Albanian hospitals; the supply of 3,000 customized surgical instrument sets, 6,000 standard models of surgical instruments, 71 kinds of sets, 96,000 general and specialist surgery instruments. “A real revolution – the Albanian Prime Minister stated during the inauguration ceremony – that offers Italian excellence at the disposal of the Albanian health sector, aligning itself with European standards and creating a hundred new jobs.” The ceremony was also attended by Health Minister Ilir Beqai and his deputy, Klodian Rjepaj, the Italian Ambassador in Tirana, Alberto Cutillo, the director of “Mother Teresa” hospital, and the dean of the University of Tirana and representatives of contractors, the Umbria Region and the scientific staff of the hospital. (Red)
