The Mayor of Niteroi, Axel Grale, opened the first Polo Side List Fluminense Forum on Friday (14). Under the theme “Patient Safety: A Decade of Challenges and Progress”, the meeting brought together a number of health professionals from the city, as well as businessmen from the sector, and was held at the Associação Médica Fluminense (AMF).
Axel highlighted the growth of the medical sector in the city, especially after 2013.
A little over a decade ago, private healthcare in Niteroi had about 200 beds. Many traditional hospitals, such as Santa Mônica, Maternidade São Paulo, and Clínica Santa Juliana, are closed. Aware of the challenge of growing the health network again and increasing the availability of beds, the Niteroi Municipality has increased incentives for the sector. We reduced the Service Tax (ISS) rate from 5% to 2% for companies that provide health services. This measure had an effect and large companies in the region began to appear in the city and existing institutions were expanded and today there are nearly 2,000 beds in the city,” said the mayor.
Axel also spoke about Niterói City Hall’s investments in the municipal health network. The health hub of the Niterói Plan is implementing 450 investment packages worth R$ 260 million in the region, and more than 60 health units are already being renovated. The mayor also reported that the municipal health department has also called in more than 1,800 certified health professionals in public tenders to work in Family Physician Program units, Caps, polyclinics and core units.
The opening table was also attended by Vinicius Queiroz, President of the Federation of Hospitals, Clinics and Health Centers of Niteroi and São Gonçalo (Sendlist); Zelena Caldera, President of AMF, Alan Castro, Director of Polo Saúde Leste Fluminense; and Louise Cesio Caetano, Vice President of Virgane.
Another point discussed at the event was the importance of the health hub in the innovation ecosystem of Niterói, an initiative of the Secretariat for Science, Technology and Innovation with the Brazilian Small and Small Business Support Service (Sebrae) and the Certi Foundation, from Santa Catarina. In a lecture, the coordinator of Sebrae Leste Fluminense, Juliana Marinonio, informed that the project aims to make Niterói more human and more technical in an innovative environment of exchange and integration.
Also present was the Deputy Head of Hospital Care for the Municipal Health Secretary, Ramon Lorenzo, who spoke about the role of health surveillance.
Photos: Lucas Benevides
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