Paraguayan hospital rations linens, prioritizing insured patients

The Integrated Hospital of Ayolas, part of Paraguay's Institute of Social Welfare (IPS), has introduced new guidelines aimed at conserving institutional linens.

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IPS provides bedding to patients in general without discrimination.

The measure, communicated to nursing staff and patients, focuses on the rational use of sheets, pillowcases, and blankets identified as IPS property. According to a hospital statement, these textiles will be primarily allocated to insured patients during their hospitalization. The initiative seeks to preserve available resources, ensure their provision to beneficiaries who fund these supplies, and maintain sound administration of institutional assets.

Dr. Elizabet Achucarro, the IPS director at the hospital, explained in an interview that the directive was developed jointly with the Ministry of Public Health. She clarified that the IPS will continue to supply bedding in emergency rooms, observation areas, intensive care units, outpatient clinics, and for unscheduled admissions. "IPS provides bedding to patients in general without discrimination," Achucarro stated.

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That was what we agreed upon with the direction from the Ministry of Health, but it is not that sheets will not be provided to non-insured patients. It is not that a non-insured person arrives and therefore they are removed and left without sheets, which are always placed on the beds.

However, she noted that textiles will not be distributed for scheduled surgeries or for non-insured patients whose families can provide the necessary bedding. Achucarro emphasized that non-insured patients will not be left without linens, as beds will always be made. She urged the public to value the services provided through the IPS-Ministry of Public Health agreement, highlighting the Ayolas Health Center's provision of complex hospital care.

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What I would like is for people to give a little value to what is provided to them through the IPS – MSP agreement. The Ayolas Health Center provides complex hospital care to its users.