Founded in 1984, the St James Hospital in Sliema, is one of the top private healthcare providers in Malta. Also known as the St. James Capua hospital, the group offers a wide range of basic and specialist healthcare services from simple phlebotomy to complex surgery and including dental services and cosmetic surgery.The hospital has a mission statement of being a centre of healthcare excellence based on four key founding principles:
- Patient care and satisfaction
- The latest and best technology
- High-quality staff
- Leading consultants in their fields of expertise
Benefits offered at St James Hospital
Investment in Technology
In order to offer superior services to patients, the St James Hospital has a policy of continuous investment in the latest medical technology for diagnosis, monitoring, surgery and in the pathology laboratories. State of the art equipment is found throughout the patient facilities and clinics, and the latest technology includes 4D ultrasound, a PET CT Scanner, MRI and Spiral CT Scanner, surgical lasers, an a.r.t (infertility) laboratory and a comprehensive digital radiology system.
Hospital Wards
St James Hospital is proud of its patient to nursing ratio which is 4:1 on average. Patients admitted to wards are cared for by teams of professional consultants, doctors, nursing staff and various health assistants. The medical staff is supported by efficient maintenance and housekeeping staff.
Private Rooms
The hospital has a good number of private rooms. All of them are single occupancy with en-suite bathroom, air conditioning and all the equipment needed to ensure maximum patient comfort: multi-sectional bed that has variable height adjusters, telephone, colour cable television, piped medical gasses, and nurse-call button to ensure there is contact with the nursing and medical staff. Some of the rooms are linked to a central monitoring system at the nurse's station and if required, overnight facilities for relatives or carers are available. Wireless internet connections are also available. There is also a resident medical doctor on site on a 24/7 basis.
Hospital Services
Accident and Emergency
The St James Hospital in Sliema has an IMCU (Immediate Medical Care Unit) which is open 24 hours, every day. The group also has an IMCU with their Zabbar hospital. The IMCUs are staffed by a full team of doctors, nurses, technicians, paramedics and ambulance drivers who are dedicated and compassionate in being able to offer emergency assessment and treatment for accidents and medical conditions.
Surgery
Operating theatres at the Hospital are modern, clean and equipped with high-quality medical technology. Each operating room is equipped with full monitoring facilities and anaesthetic equipment set up with separate handling units to ensure efficient, positive pressure and flow that conforms to the highest and most rigorous safety standards. The major medical gasses – oxygen, nitrous dioxide, and compressed air (both 4bar and 7bar) – are piped into each theatre. To ensure there is no loss of power in the even of supply failure, all equipment in the operating theatres is connected to an independent uninterrupted power supply. Neuro and orthopaedic is performed in a theatre that is equipped with an ultraclean ventilation system.
The Maternity Unit
St James Hospital offers the full range of maternity services. In fact, it has very few rivals among hospitals in Europe who can match the choices it offers expectant mothers. The hospital has a hygienic and comfortable environment with professional and friendly staff, including male and female gynaecologists, who aim to ensure a memorable birth experience for every mother. The unit pays attention to and serves the needs of each individual mother offering natural births, dry births, water births, epidural births, and caesarean births, along with ante-natal care. As well as dedicated maternity theatres, there is a specially-designed pool for water births, and two delivery rooms equipped with resuscitation equipment and foetal monitors for difficult births. The maternity unit is also equipped with monitoring equipment and ultrasound machines as well as being able to undertake laboratory investigations.
Heart and Lung Unit
With the only private Catheterisation Suite in Malta, the Heart and Lung Unit at St James Hospital is able to offer a program of specialist tests, diagnostic tests, interventional tests, and corrective cardiac and pulmonary interventions. The unit also offers cardiac rehabilitation programmes.
Medical Laboratories
A diverse number of disciplines of laboratory medicine are covered by the hospital, each under the direction of experienced and professional scientist supported by administrative and clerical staff. In the well-equipped on-site laboratories, the sciences include haematology and blood transfusions, microbiology, histopathology, immunology, virology, cytology, toxicology and clinical chemistry. As the laboratory is enrolled in the European RIQAS programme, internal and external quality controls are assessed every fifteen days for accuracy and precision.
Health Screening Unit
The health screening unit in the outpatient department at St James Hospital is concerned with preventative health measures. The unit offers a full check up and various tailor-made screening packages aimed at detecting potential health problems. The package generally includes a questionnaire for the patient to answer, a full medical examination by consultant or doctor and a number of screenings, and/or tests according to either the package chosen, age or other factors. The patient is provided with a fully comprehensive report written by the screening doctor which gives a review of the results and suggestions of changes in lifestyle with a view to reducing risk of serious illness.There are other services in addition to those mentioned above. For further information please visit the St James Hospital website.
Admittance to The Hospital
The specific protocol for your particular problem/treatment is explained to you once you have seen a consultant and your in-patient stay has been confirmed. There are however, some general guidelines that apply to every type of admission. These are:
- Do not drink alcohol 24 hours before your admittance
- Cut down on smoking as much as you can, particularly if you are to have a procedure that involves general anaesthesia
- If you are suffering from any illness such as a cold, flu or a sore throat, contact the hospital immediately as it is possible your admission will need to be postponed for a later date.
Check List of Items to Bring:
- The hospital provides some basic items like bathrobes, towels, shampoo and soap but it is recommended each patient brings the following to the hospital with them:
- Nightwear
- Personal toiletries
- Hairbrush or comb
- Slippers and dressing gown
- Comfortable clothes (loose fitting)
- Books, magazines or things to do, including toys if the patient is a child
- Toys and books
- Eyeglasses, contact lenses, dentures and hearing aids (including their protective containers)
- Existing medications, supplements and vitamins
- Any relevant medical documents you have been provided with (lab results, x-rays, pre-operative test results)
- Health insurance documents (if applicable)
- A form of identification like identity card, passport or driving licence
