New Tissue Bank at Colentina Hospital is ready, but lack of staff delays its operationalization

The new Tissue Bank built within the premises of the Colentina Clinical Hospital in Bucharest is fully completed and is to be received this month. Although the investment of over 37 million lei is practically completed, the effective operation of the unit depends on the hiring of the necessary staff, in a context in which positions in the public health system remain blocked.

• Works have been fully completed

Representatives of the Bucharest Hospitals and Medical Services Administration (ASSMB) stated, for news.ro, that the works on the new Tissue Bank within the Colentina Clinical Hospital are 100% completed. According to the institution, the acceptance report upon completion of the works will be signed during July, and after completing the administrative procedures, the new building will be put into use. The building has a height regime of basement, ground floor, one floor and partial technical floor (B+G+1F+partial technical floor), a built area of 501.56 square meters and a developed area of 1,535.29 square meters. According to ASSMB, the construction was designed and executed in accordance with current standards regarding environmental protection and energy efficiency.

The total value of the investment amounts to 37,246,324.77 lei, VAT included, with financing being provided entirely from the local budget of the Municipality of Bucharest, according to ASSMB.

• The unit will be able to process four types of tissues

The new bank will allow the harvesting, testing, processing and storage of four important categories of tissues: bone and tendon, skin, cornea and heart valves. According to ASSMB, the operationalization of this medical structure will contribute to increasing the national transplant capacity, by reducing waiting times and by ensuring faster access to tissues necessary for surgical interventions.

• Deficit of personnel for the operation of the new structure

Although the investment is completed, the effective operation of the new Multi-Tissue Bank depends on the completion of the personnel scheme. ASSMB specified that the medical staff will be provided by the specialized structure of the Colentina Clinical Hospital, but the institution does not currently have updated information on the staff that will serve the new unit. Medical sources within the hospital stated that the current osteo-tendinous tissue bank, which already operates within the Colentina Clinical Hospital, has seven employees: two doctors and five medical assistants. In return, the new Multi-Tissue Bank will need a team of approximately 29 people, including five doctors, two biologists and 12 medical assistants, the rest representing auxiliary and technical personnel necessary for the activity.

• Hiring freeze represents the main obstacle

The difference between the existing staff and the needs of the new structure means that the hospital will have to recruit additional staff in order for the bank to operate at capacity.

However, this approach is complicated by the freeze of positions in the public health system.

After the building is received, other administrative stages will have to be completed, namely the approval of the organizational chart of the new structure and the identification of the necessary funding for the professional training of the staff who will work in the bank.

The new Tissue Bank at the Colentina Clinical Hospital is considered a strategic investment for the Romanian transplant system, as it will expand the capacity for harvesting, processing and preserving tissues used in complex surgical interventions. The completion of the construction is an important step, but the commissioning of the unit depends on resolving the staff shortage and completing the necessary administrative procedures, in a context in which restrictions on employment in the healthcare system continue to affect the development of specialized medical services.