EU for better health: vital diagnostic equipment available across the country

In 2019, an EU-funded project made an assessment of the healthcare in North Macedonia – and concluded that in spite of considerable investments over the previous decade, this sector lacked equipment with diagnostic imaging technologies. Namely, there were only eight magnet resonance imaging (MRI) systems in the entire country (of which five in Skopje), or 3.9 per 1,000,000 population, which did not make even a quarter of the EU average. At the same time, there were 18 computed tomography (CT) units or 8.7 per 1,000,000 inhabitants, which was less than 40% of the EU average.

All this changed with the EU’s donation of modern equipment to eight regional medical centres across the country. From October 2021 until May 2022, the hospitals in Strumica, Prilep and Ohrid received magnet resonance imagining (MRI) systems, and the hospitals in Kichevo, Kavadarci, Kumanovo, Gevgelija, and the University Pulmonology Clinic in Skopje computed tomography (CT) devices.

This assistance helped the country to come closer to the EU average. In practice this means that citizens from these regions no longer need to make appointments and travel to Skopje - they locally have the possibility for early and proper diagnostics, which is a pre-condition for prevention of serious illnesses and their successful treatment.

Ambassador David Geer’s statement /media/77809

Video from the installation of the equipment /media/77862