Mexico Invests 13 Billion Pesos in Medical Equipment for Public Hospitals

IMSS Bienestar announced a significant investment of 13 billion pesos (approximately $720 million USD) dedicated to equipping public hospitals with advanced medical technology and innovation by 2026. This initiative aims to acquire over 32,000 pieces of new medical equipment for the public health network.

Key acquisitions will include eight linear accelerators, eleven MRI machines, and seventy mammography units equipped with artificial intelligence, alongside over one hundred standard mammography devices. Alejandro Svarch Pérez, Director General of IMSS Bienestar, stated that this investment reverses a decades-long trend where advanced technology was primarily accessible only in private hospitals in major cities.

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During decades, this technology only reached private hospitals in big cities, following a market logic. We are reversing this logic; the most advanced technology goes first where it is most needed. This means ensuring that populations that have historically been excluded are the first to benefit from this type of technological expansion.

"We are investing this logic, the most advanced technology goes first where it is most needed. This means ensuring that populations that have historically been excluded are the first to benefit from this type of technological expansion," Svarch explained. He highlighted specific examples, such as the acquisition of an AI-equipped tomograph with telemedicine capabilities for the Jesús María General Hospital in Nayarit, benefiting 47,000 people with an investment of 22.5 million pesos.

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We will be operating today in high-specialty fetal medicine, which is public and free.

The announcement also detailed advancements in specialized care, including the first fetoscopic surgery to close gastroschisis performed at the Dr. Gustavo A. Rovirosa Pérez High Specialty Regional Hospital in Tabasco. This hospital also monitors pregnant women with fetal structural abnormalities in other states like Chiapas, Oaxaca, and Hidalgo, offering high-specialty fetal medicine services that are public and free of charge.

Furthermore, the IMSS Bienestar General Hospital in Jiutepec, Morelos, now operates an "intelligent operating room" integrating medical imaging, monitoring, anesthesia, video, and clinical documentation, all connected in real-time with other units and specialists. The Dr. Agustín O'Horan General Hospital in Yucatán features robotic surgery, a technology also implemented in five hospitals in the State of Mexico, Quintana Roo, and Mexico City. IMSS Bienestar aims to certify 68 surgeons in robotic surgery by 2026, emphasizing its precision for minimally invasive procedures.

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The robot operates with millimeter precision, allowing for safer minimally invasive procedures with less bleeding, fewer complications, and faster recovery for our patients.