AFTER nearly 10 years of delay while Panama’s Hospital Del Nino has struggled to cope with a growing demand in cramped and outdated facilities,  bidding will soon begin for the construction of a new $400, million facility on Avenida Balboa.

The project including a maternity wing for Hospital Santo Tomas (HST)  will take three years to complete.

[caption id="attachment_49685" align="alignleft" width="373"] 100,000 emergency room patients[/caption]

Paúl Gallardo, medical director of the pediatric hospital, said that in the absence of space an ongoing crisis has been generated. The emergency room handles more than 100,000 patients and 100,000  attend the specialized external consultation.

The tender for the design and development of the plans for a new hospital was prepared in January this year but was delayed because some areas were declared to be a historical heritage, leading to modifications.

“Now, a pre-selection has been carried out in with interested companies  from Japan, South Korea, China, Spain, Portugal, Germany, and  Italy, interested in bidding for the construction, equipment, and maintenance, of the hospital and the maternity ward of Hospital Santo Tomas , and the restructuring of the gardens of the hospital, "said  Gallardo.

Interested companies must submit their proposals, by May 28 and the evaluation committee must submit a report,  by the end of June.

Gabriel Cedeño, adviser of the Health Ministry said that the cost of the investment of $400 million includes the construction of the Hospital Del Nino and a maternity wing of the HST.

"The selected company will have to build, equip and, through a contract, give maintenance for three years to the equipment and facilities," Cedeño said.

The groundbreaking ceremony is expected to take place before year-end.