Sofia's second HEMS hospital heliport officially opened

UMBAL Sveta Ekaterina is the second hospital in the capital to have a registered hospital heliport. This is the first medical facility to have a rooftop heliport. The Director General of DG Civil Aviation Administration Anelia Marinova handed over today the registration documents to the Executive Director of the hospital Prof. Dr. Dimitar Petkov.

‘We are one step closer to the realization of a national cause — emergency medical assistance by air,’ Anelia Marinova said. She noted that despite the challenges in constructing the airport on the roof of the building, the teams of the hospital, the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the Ministry of Health as well as the contractors of the project have made the necessary efforts to complete the facility in accordance with European standards. ‘I wish the hospital management that every mission that is carried out at this airport ends with a human life saved,’ Anelia Marinova said.

UMBAL Sveta Ekaterina is one of the three hospitals in Sofia to join the HEMS system. So far there is a registered heliport at UMBAL Sveta Anna, and the airport at UMBAL Lozenets is expected to receive registration soon.

The ceremony was attended by the Minister of Health prof. Hristo Hinkov, Deputy Minister of Health prof. Ilko Getov and the Executive Director of Bulgaria Heli Med Service EAD Dimcho Dobrev.