Sijsele (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – A renovation project has transformed the outpatient clinic at Sanapolis Health Campus Sijsele. Patient admission occurs through a dedicated entrance at the outpatient clinic, which belongs to AZ Alma in Eeklo, where 25 doctors currently serve patients.
The outpatient clinic at AZ Alma’s Sanapolis health campus in Sijsele has undergone comprehensive renovations, including a new separate entrance, waiting area, and consultation rooms. Twenty-five doctors across nine specialities now serve patients at the updated facility, which resumed operations after a temporary relocation during construction.
The renovations aim to enhance accessibility for patients in the Sijsele/Damme, Maldegem, and Sint-Laureins regions, ensuring continuity of care through collaboration with local general practitioners.
“It is important for our patients from the Sijsele/Damme, Maldegem and Sint-Laureins region to know that they will be able to visit their trusted doctors here at the Sanapolis Health Campus on our former hospital site, which is currently under full development, for many years to come,”
Says Rudy Maertens, General Manager and CEO of AZ Alma.
“It is good that we remain firmly anchored in this region of the former Elisabeth Hospital and that our most important referrers, the general practitioners, can continue to send their patients to our outpatient clinic with confidence,”
Adds Eddy Kuppens, chairman of the medical council and one of the doctors who will hold consultations there.
What is the history of AZ Alma in Sijsele/Eeklo?
The Sijsele and Eeklo districts of northern Belgium receive healthcare through AZ Alma, which operates two major hospitals. A merger between Elisabeth Hospital in Sijsele and Heilig Hart Clinic in Eeklo created the current AZ Alma Hospital, which operates between two facilities in Eeklo and Sijsele. The hospital merger implemented modernised healthcare practices with improved operational efficiency for every resident in the area.
When the main AZ Alma facility began operations in March 2017, it became known as the region’s largest new construction, with 60,000 square meters of floor space. The hospital complex supports 513 beds while employing more than 120 doctors and having between 1,250 workers and 125 to 175 volunteer staff. AZ Alma operates essential healthcare services and concurrently stands as a major employment hub in the region.
The healthcare system of Belgium delivers one of the best healthcare services in Europe to patients under AZ Alma’s domain. Belgium took the fourth position on the Euro Health Consumer Index 2016 because European citizens could conveniently access healthcare facilities quickly.
The Belmont hospital sector in Belgium experienced a 23% reduction between 2000 and 2017, which showed a clear trend of merging hospitals for modernisation, which can be seen in AZ Alma’s development.
Factory designers at AZ Alma incorporated innovative medical equipment, advanced IT systems, and sustainable construction elements to create a facility built for the future needs of healthcare. The facility maintains 14 operating spaces along with digitalised systems and air filtration technology that exchanges the hospital’s complete atmosphere every 180 seconds.
The hospital investments ensure that AZ Alma fulfils its purpose of offering top-quality patient-focused medical services that function as the foundation of healthcare delivery for Sijsele/Eeklo.
