APEX medical centre is preparing a project proposal under EEA and Norway ;

The project will be implemented in two cities in the Pleven region which belong to NUTS 2 North-West Planning Region (the poorest region in Europe, having the worst demographic indicators, the highest mortality among the adult population and the highest number of children with disabilities).

European context

The healthcare system in Bulgaria faces several major challenges simultaneously. Bulgarians have the lowest life expectancy in the EU, because the health system is not effective in reducing the preventable mortality rate. The rate of people dying from cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and other noncommunicable diseases does not seem to ; In fact, Bulgaria has the highest mortality in EU from cardiovascular  diseases such as stroke and very low rates of survival in several types of cancer. In addition, health professionals migrate to other countries in search of better prospects for career development and higher wages. In order to make the picture even darker, Bulgaria is also a leader in the number of mentally ill individuals.

Bulgaria has not yet developed strategies and legislation about the mentally diseased that are in line with international and regional human rights instruments as required by the European Union. The range of services for severe mental disorders in Bulgaria is decreasing in contrast to the number of people with mental disorders which is increasing.

The project

In the context of the information shared above, the project aims to develop two pilot initiatives related to European health standards and ; During project implementation, health plans at NUTS3 level will be developed despite the lack of such in Bulgaria. The project will focus on health indicators based on reliable and comparable data and value in implementing European project initiatives. For health indicators, EU targets will be adopted as: Health Indicators (ECHI) over 60 indicators used by the Heidi data tool.

The project also envisages the inclusion of European health networks such as: European Reference Networks (ERM) - virtual networks involving healthcare providers across Europe.  This will facilitate the discussion of problems associated with complex or rare diseases requiring highly specialized treatment and concentration of knowledge and resources. The project will also provide for the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) that can improve prevention, diagnosis, treatment, supervision and management, including virtual technologies.

Activities

• Preparatory activities:

Presentations to the partners about their place and role and the information sought on the concept phase.  If the project initiative gets nominated, the standing of each partner will be explained in detail with technical specifications and other required information.

• Pilot action in the town of Slavyanovo, Pleven municipality, Pleven region:

The logic of the pilot activity is to plan to create conditions for a decent life of 40-50 elderly people, comparable to European standards. Social innovation will be accepted as a "know-how" by a partner from Norway.

There are about 70 state institutions in Bulgaria with a total capacity of 5300 beds.  The number of private institutions is around 190. According to the Social Security Agency, the number of people waiting to be accommodated in such institutions is much greater than the country's total capacity. This bureaucratic system delays the reception of elderly people in ; The higher demand is also consequence of the demographic trends in Bulgaria. Because of the high rates of migration among the younger generation, relatives are unable to take care of their parents.  There are no social contacts for those elderly people and, ultimately this leads to social exclusion, depression and high mortality.

The project plans to create a new design, including specialized hospital equipment that meets modern European health standards. In addition to the main facility for social services there will be separate premises for pre-hospital and post-hospital care; rehabilitation rooms; a holistic center. There will be a greenhouse in addition to the main building that will have a variety of plants and flowers so that they may increase the vitality in the elderly ; To minimize costs, the future institution will implement a wide range of energy-efficient solutions and will seek help from the partners.

•  Pilot action in the town of Levski, Levski municipality, Pleven region.

In Bulgaria, children with mental disabilities that are deprived of parental care live in state homes. Most of the homes for children aged to 18 are located in villages and towns and around 60% of state homes are located in buildings built between 1952-1970 which cannot be repaired mainly due to the low state subsidy. This puts Bulgaria in a difficult situation to uphold even basic European standards.

The Roma population in the municipality of Levski is around 40% out of the 25 500 living there. The number of children in need of care is far greater than the capacity of the only home for social care in the region – the HMSCC – Pleven that can only accommodate 20 children.  That’s why there is a need for creating a home for children with special needs. We envision to position it on a whole floor (around 400-500 sqr. m) In the building of a former municipal hospital in the town of Levski. Thus, we will be able to provide accommodation for 30-35 children with special needs as well as space for parents that wish to visit.

Consortium

Project partners need to work together in a transnational partnership to achieve the set project goals. All project partners must actively participate and effectively contribute to the project implementation, ie. partnership must be justified and sustainable within the consortium. We want to constitute a consortium with up to 9 members.

• The coordinating partner of the consortium is “APEX medical center” ltd. Other
• Bulgarian partner: Levski Hospital ltd.
• Municipality of Levski
• Municipality of Pleven

Pilot initiatives shall be held in both health institutions. Municipal authorities in Bulgaria have specific health and social functions thus they greatly contribute to the partnership.

We are searching for:

Norwegian partner/s: We are searching for institutions that provide social activities for elderly people, people with disabilities or a home for children with disabilities.

We are also interested in partnership with institutions from around Europe, preferably from Germany, Poland, Netherlands or Sweden.

Profile of the partner: Institutions that have experience with the management of specialized health institutions; institutions with experience in planning and creating "smart health / social homes”, partners that can create effective health care courses using innovative technologies, including VR to improve patient-to-patient relationship; structures that can promote mobility (occupational and geographical mobility to improve job matching, benefits for labor mobility and deepening of technology implementation within healthcare courses).

 Innovation

 Health Care

 Cross-border cooperation

 Transnational cooperation

 Mental health