A friend in need is a friend indeed - the medics from the Galabovo Hospital are firmly convinced in the truth of this proverb. The hospital, which is the only one fully operational in the area of the Maritsa East energy complex, copes the fifth wave of Covid19 a little calmer and better prepared.
This is possible thanks to the direct significant support from one of the largest power plants in the complex – ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP, provided during the past two years of the pandemic.
The municipal hospital in the energy city annually treats over 3,300 patients and like all medical facilities is faced with the serious challenges of the pandemic. It is the only medical institution with a specialized COVID ward in the region of Galabovo and Radnevo. It has 20 beds that have hardly been vacant in the last 18 months.
The facility is old, but with the help of friends such as the power plant is being renovated gradually.
Last autumn ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP donated to the hospital new medical apparatuses that greatly help the work of the medics on the first line. The donation includes multi-parameter monitors and a second central monitoring station, remote modules, an ECG, a defibrillator, intensive care hospital beds, perfusors, pulse oximeters and an X-ray digitalization system.
‘Hospitals far from the big centres cannot cope alone without help. We have to work hard and the funds are less. For this reason, the help of dedicated donors such as ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP is extremely valuable. Thanks to the company, we now have an intensive care respirator. The new equipment improved the diagnosis, treatment and transportation of patients and will significantly increase our response readiness to complicated situations’, said Dr. Gosho Grozev, director of Galabovo Hospital.
The received equipment is worth almost BGN 100,000, but according to Dr. Grozev, the help of ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP is important not only financially. Acquiring such equipment at a time of pandemic and high global demand is difficult, he said.
‘Our power plant is only a few kilometers away from Galabovo. We see the challenges that medical specialists at the local hospital face on a daily basis. As a good neighbor, we couldn't help but lend a hand. Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have been in active communication with the management of the Galabovo Hospital. It was difficult to get the specialized equipment that the medics needed in a short time, but we still managed on time. We hope this will help to adequately treat and save more people, especially knowing that the local community relies entirely on this hospital’, said Nadia Sinigerska-Bohorova, Communications and CSR Manager at ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3.
ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP, which generated almost half of the electricity of Bulgaria's households in 2021, has been supporting medics and the local community in the battle with Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. So far, the company has set aside over half a million BGN for this purpose. As early as 2020, ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP provided urgent repairs to the oxygen supply system for patients at the municipal hospital. The first important equipment and consumables for treatment were delivered - multiparameter intensive care monitors, central monitoring station and mobile X-ray for lung graphs for the COVID-ward, mobile wireless monitors, ECG device and biphasic defibrillator for the ambulance, personal protective kits, disinfectants and quick tests.
‘The support of the company is very important for us as specialists, so we feel more confident, secure and calm in the care we provide to patients. ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP responded quickly and timely, and helped us many times when we were experiencing the worst situation due to the pandemic. That is why we highly appreciate the support of the power plant. More than the cost of the equipment itself. Because it was absolutely necessary’, said Dr. Grozev.
In the spring of 2020, ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP also supported the campaign of the United Against COVID-19 Fund with BGN 100,000. The greater part of the more than BGN 1 million raised by the Fund was distributed in support of municipal hospitals and medical centers across the country, including Stara Zagora.
The company also contributes to a number of other initiatives, related to ensuring more security in crowded places - disinfectants and protective equipment were provided for the Zachary Knyazheski Regional Library in Stara Zagora, sanitary packages for schools and government institutions, sheltered children deprived of parental care in Galabovo and Stara Zagora. Assistance for the daily measures against COVID-19 was also received at the Home for People with Physical Disabilities in Stara Zagora and the Samaritan House Crisis Center in the city. Protective masks and disinfectants were provided for the families of the plant's employees on the eve of the first school day.
‘The pandemic has not just changed our aid strategy - it has reinforced the need to provide support. We have changed our priorities, but we have remained committed to helping local communities and society at large. We have done a great deal of work, but unfortunately Covid-19 continues to presents us with newer challenges. I am convinced that with the joint efforts of doctors, business, institutions and local authorities, we will be able to cope with them’, said Nadia Sinigerska- Bohorova.
ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3 TPP is among the largest employers and generous donors in the region of Stara Zagora and Galabovo, where its thermal power plant is located. In the past few years the company has donated over BGN 5 million in projects for the benefit of society, and the main part of the funds is intended for the local communities.