«The change has been amazing, the workers, the patients, the relatives, are very happy with the new state-of-the-art building. In a ward where there is so much suffering, the truth is that we are surprised by the amount of gratitude from the patients”, comments Sara Somolinos, nursing supervisor in Oncology. It refers to the new Oncology and Advanced Therapies Center of the Gregorio Marañón University General Hospital, which, after the transfer of all its patients on June 30, opens its doors to GRAN MADRID. The new facilities stand out for their comfort, their spaciousness and their commitment to natural light with its large windows, as it “gives more life to the place”.
Another of the highlights of the new building are the individual rooms for the sick, where they can be accompanied by their relatives and loved ones.. “Before I could not have visitors and now my family accompanies me, it is not the same to talk on the phone than to have them present,” says Alfredo Álvarez. The same is the opinion of Juan Carlos de la Peña, another of those who received this newspaper in his own bed.. «Before no one could accompany you, now with the individual rooms my wife can stay the night. I am delighted with these facilities and the care provided by the doctors.”
This Oncology and Advanced Therapies Center has eight floors and 18,000 square meters and currently has 50 day hospital posts, 44 medical consultations, 11 extraction posts, eight posts for Phase 1 clinical trials and, also, with 81 private rooms, 50 of which can be converted into doubles to meet a possible increase in care demand, where doctors and nurses count as another of the notable points. In addition, a commitment to sustainability has been made in the building, with savings of up to 80% in electricity consumption, through the implementation of LED lighting, intelligent biometric presence detectors for the use of natural light and the installation of 140 panels photovoltaic solar.
The transfer from the old facilities was carried out in a staggered and orderly manner, from the least complex to the most delicate.. First, the laboratories and research areas were moved to be able to continue with the consultations.. Later, they proceeded with the hospitalization floors that culminated in the transfer of the patients from the Palliative Care Unit.. «In comparison with the previous hospital, in this center everything is new, I am very comfortable. The truth is that I am delighted with the professionals, they make us feel very good”, comments María José, a patient who has been treated for two years for cancer.
A patient receives his treatment with a family member. CALM SPACES
Patients are not the only ones who are happy with the implementation of this state-of-the-art space, where the privacy of its residents prevails. María Luisa Solano, a doctor at the Palliative Care Unit, agrees that “the fundamental thing about the new building is that palliative patients have individual rooms, a space where they can relax, where they can cry, laugh, receive visitors. The same for relatives, who have a place to spend the night ». In the corridors of the hospital, very difficult situations are experienced due to the devastating diseases that patients go through, and having a space where they can unload seems to be of great help.. «I feel privileged to work in these conditions, the means we have now are wonderful. In addition, the patients are very comfortable, now they have private rooms, more light and adapted bathrooms,” says Belén Martínez, a local nurse, with a smile.
It also has 11 special rooms, eight dedicated to patients receiving a bone marrow transplant and another three for negative pressure isolation.. The hospital floors have rest areas for patients and family members, waiting and information rooms, and even an outdoor terrace located on the fifth floor.. “The fact that patients have a place to go out, where they get fresh air and can see the sky, is truly a luxury,” says María Luisa Solano, a doctor at the Palliative Care Unit.. The bedrooms also have magnetic drawing boards, which serve as leisure and entertainment, both for the patient and for family members. Jesús Díaz de la Fuente comments: “My grandchildren draw different pictures every time they come and I leave them on the blackboard until they visit me again, they have fun and I have fun with them.” In other words, they have all the comforts so that convalescents have a more pleasant stay.
In short, the new building revalues the Gregorio Marañón, where its professionals carry out more than 45,000 consultations; They care for 1,700 new patients, administer more than 18,000 treatments in the day hospital and make 1,300 admissions. An example to imitate.