OREANDA-NEWS. December 11, 2015. Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved a loan of \$170 million to help El Salvador to improve the Salvadorans’ health by strengthening health care service delivery at all levels of the network and improvement in the efficiency of the public network management.

This project will strengthen the hospital network with the construction, equipment, and commissioning of two new hospitals. A high-complexity hospital with 400 beds will be built in the Department of San Salvador, it will have national coverage and it will serve more than 5.4 million Ministry of Health (MINSAL) beneficiaries, providing specialized services such as cardiology, endocrinology, neurology, nephrology, among others.

The second 100-bed hospital will be located in the North zone of the Department of San Salvador which will help to increase the supply of services in the area of the greatest population growth in the country by covering 350,000 MINSAL beneficiaries. The obstetric care coverage in eight hospitals will also be expanded with the coverage of more than 290,000 people that will contribute to further strengthening the mother and child care network.

The program will consolidate the model of ambulatory care network, including increased coverage of Integrated and Comprehensive Health Services Networks that focus on prevention and health promotion in the North and South zones of the Department of San Salvador.

This will be achieved by implementing 33 Community Teams, building 30 Community Family Health Basic Units, and the equipment of 32 existing units. Furthermore, two specialized Community Health Units and eight intermediate will be built and equipped. In urban areas, an innovative model will be implemented in four cities with the construction and equipment of reference centers for specialized care.

The resources will also support the efficiency of the health system with the development of the hospital management and networking model. To do this, human resource management, information systems, modernizing procurement systems; and the implementation of the maintenance fund infrastructure and hospital equipment, among others, will be strengthened.

The financing of \$170 million comes from the Bank’s Ordinary Capital resources; it has an amortization period of 25 years, a grace period of 5.5 years and an interest rate based on LIBOR. The executing agency is the Ministry of Health.

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The Inter-American Development Bank is devoted to improving lives. Established in 1959, the IDB is a leading source of long-term financing for economic, social and institutional development in Latin America and the Caribbean. The IDB also conducts cutting-edge research and provides policy advice, technical assistance and training to public and private sector clients throughout the region.