Cyprus Mail: News Articles in English, 03-03-25

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From: The Cyprus Mail at <http://www.cyprus-mail.com/>

Tuesday, March 25, 2003

CONTENTS

[01] Bases deny war victims being brought to Cyprus

[02] President told not to speak after US vocal chords treatment

[03] Clinics say they need more nurses as inspections get under way

[04] University to step up efforts for private funding

[01] Bases deny war victims being brought to Cyprus

THE BRITISH Bases (SBA) yesterday denied reports that British and American troops killed in Iraq had been transferred to Akrotiri.

According to Simerini, more than 20 coffins were reported to have been transported from Iraq to Cyprus, on their way for either Germany or Britain.

But bases spokesman Tony Brumwell yesterday denied the reports, saying the only casualties the bases had received were soldiers injured in exercises not related to the war in Iraq.

“There are some injured soldiers, but not from the conflict,” he said.

“As far as we are concerned, there are no dead bodies and the casualties are all training related. We received soldiers with minor injuries like broken ankles and pneumonia. The soldiers were treated and were flown out. At the moment there are no bodies being moved through here.”

Brumwell refused to comment on what happened to the bodies of soldiers killed in action, saying it was a policy question for the Ministry of Defence in London.

Brumwell added the role of the SBAs in the war had not changed.

“It is still the same regime in terms of providing logistics and fuel for aircraft,” he said.

Brumwell denied reports that the Cyprus Coastguard had been banned from patrolling around the SBA.

“We did not ban the coastguard from patrolling the area,” he said. But they have been stopped from going anywhere near refuelling vessels for safety reasons, because the fuel is highly flammable.”

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

Tuesday, March 25, 2003

[02] President told not to speak after US vocal chords treatment

THE Government Spokesman said yesterday that President Tassos Papadopoulos would not be making any public statements in the next few days due to treatment on his vocal cords in the United States.

Chrysostomides said Papadopoulos - who returned to Cyprus last night - had completed his tests successfully.

“During his stay in the USA, President Papadopoulos completed treatment for the known problem of his vocal cords, which emerged last January,” the spokesman said.

He added: “Due to this, the President will avoid making public speeches or statements in the next few days.

But in January, amid rumours about the seriousness of his throat condition, Papadopoulos' party said he was “suffering from acute laryngitis together with a heavy cold”.

For the first few weeks of the election campaign, Papadopoulos avoided public comment, sparking rumours he was suffering from a serious throat condition that had forced him to travel abroad for surgery.

Papadopoulos' spokesman told the Cyprus Mail in January that doctors had suggested that he not to strain his voice.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

Tuesday, March 25, 2003

[03] Clinics say they need more nurses as inspections get under way

PRIVATE clinics across the island are undergoing inspections to ensure they meet new medical standards, the Health Ministry confirmed yesterday.

The inspections are required as part of a new law governing standards in existing private clinics as well as private medical centres under construction.

According to Dr Constantinos Mallis, the Ministry's Head of Medical Services, the law was introduced in 2001 and was due to be applied to existing private clinics and hospitals in 2002, but instead had to be delayed a further year due to the chronic lack of nursing staff in Cyprus.

“Because most private clinics are affected by a shortage of nursing staff, the Ministry decided to delay the formal implementation of the new standards for existing private clinics, though they have applied to new centres since 2002.”

So far, between 30 and 40 private sector clinics have been checked by inspection teams, each comprising two doctors, two nurses and two health inspectors.

However, Mallis says the inspections made to date have been more like advisory visits made in co-operation with clinic directors, with the aim of ascertaining areas needing improvements.

“At the moment, the inspection teams are pointing out inadequacies and problem areas for clinics to address, so that by October or November we can go back and do a formal reassessment,” he added.

Speaking to the Cyprus Mail yesterday Androulla Constantinides, Administrative Director of Nicosia's Evangelistria Medical Centre said the new law was based on basic principles and stipulated standard criteria regarding equipment, hospital space and staff-patient ratios.

She added that the law was welcomed by all private clinics, but said the main obstacle to its implementation was the island's shortage of nurses.

“The Health Ministry has not been able to resolve the problem of nursing staff for many years now. The difficulty is that the number of nurses graduating from nursing school here does not take into consideration the amount of nurses needed in the private sector, and only satisfies the number required in public hospitals.”

She added that the problem would remain unsolved unless something was done soon.

“Either the nursing school must expand or the Ministry must follow the line taken in the UK, and bring in nurses from abroad and employ them where they are needed.

“The previous Minister (Frixos Savvides) tried to bring in foreign nurses but a mixture of red tape and objection by the unions put a stop to his efforts,” she added.

Asked what the new Ministry proposed to do to resolve the situation, Mallis said there were still plans to bring in nurses from abroad.

“We aim to import nurses to relieve the current staff shortage. And we hope this can be achieved once the bureaucracy is simplified to allow private clinics to employ foreign nurses.”

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

Tuesday, March 25, 2003

[04] University to step up efforts for private funding

THE UNIVERSITY of Cyprus is taking measures to make itself more attractive to affluent members of society who wish to make donations.

University rector Stavros Zenios told the Cyprus Mail yesterday that the institute was currently organising a fund-raising campaign to be launched in early May, entitled 'University of Cyprus 2010: Towards European Excellence'.

The date has no specific significance other than to highlight the university's long-term vision. But Zenios did reveal that the two schools of Applied Sciences and Economics and Management would be in operation by 2010 at the new university village currently under construction in Aglandja, along with student residences and the Central Administration building.

“The campaign will reveal how we are trying to integrate the university with potential benefactors by establishing endowed chairs, funding for scholarships and fellowships and supporting the development of the campus,” he said, adding, “In general, we want to strengthen the economic well-being of the university and gain a degree of financial independence.”

The university will take a discreet approach to attracting potential benefactors, following the example of many institutions abroad that have developed close links with wealthy members of society, which in turn gives them greater financial freedom.

“We want to cultivate the idea that people with financial means are provided with the means to serve and enhance society through the university, ” said Zenios.

Meanwhile, the university is currently studying a £3 million donation offer by a private donor for a new library at the new university village. A decision will be announced in the next two weeks.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

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