Dippoldiswalde loses emergency outpatient clinic: shorter ways for patients!

Dippoldiswalde loses emergency outpatient clinic: shorter ways for patients!

In Dippoldiswalde, the doors of an important health provider will soon be finally quiet: With the announced closure of the hospital at the end of 2023, the city not only loses a central place of inpatient care, but also the emergency ambulance, which is also closed with this step. Mayor Kerstin Körner (CDU) announced the decision in the city council and emphasized that the residents now have to go to Freital or even to Dresden in order to receive medical help as quickly as possible. This significantly affects the accessibility of urgently needed health services in the region. This development is part of a comprehensive restructuring of the Helios Clinics, which will only concentrate the inpatient care at the Freital location, as Antenne Sachsen However, a new medical offer is created in the transition phase: from January 1, 2024, Dippoldiswalde is to act as the third Saxon health center for outpatient emergency care. This includes that ten different medical practices are available on weekdays and that general internal treatment can take place in the emergency outpatient clinic from 07:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Philipp Smolka, the clinic manager of the Helios Weißertal clinics, has already announced the new offers to maintain medical care in the region.

longer path to medical care

However, the closure has serious consequences for the population in the Easter Mountains. For many patients, longer journey routes mean that in the event of a medical emergency, they not only lose time, but also risk deterioration in their health. "It is therefore very important to us to develop innovative concepts that ensure medical care in rural regions," explains a spokesman for regional management. The need for medical services increases in rural areas, especially in the face of an aging population and more common diseases, which increases the need for a robust infrastructure, as well as the Federal Center for Political Education emphasized.

These changes are in a larger context: medical and nursing care is a central part of general interest. Supply facilities are rare in rural areas, and often the paths to the nearest doctors and clinics are wide. According to the Federal Center, the low population density in many regions only offers limited access to specialized medical offers, which continues to complicate the situation for the sick.

Hope for a maternity clinic

A ray of hope could be the idea that a birth clinic will be located in the former hospital in the future, which is already being converted as a medical care center (MVZ). Mayor Körner remains optimistic and has expressed hope that new opportunities will soon open up here. The medical staff and local supporters are working to find creative solutions for health care in Dippoldiswalde.

In the middle of these challenges there was also reason to be happy. 36 young women and men from the district have achieved a school leaving certificate with a grade of 1.1 or better, and fifteen graduates even shine with the top grade of 1.0. These successes show that despite the tense situation in Dippoldiswalde, there is also a positive development in education. One of the best graduates, Sina Walther, had already achieved an excellent degree after the tenth grade.

The coming months will be crucial for the medical care of the region. Innovative concepts and close cooperation between different health providers are essential to continue to ensure general interest. After all, we all rely on a good health system - no matter where we live.