Message from Deputy Director Mihai CIOCANU (Emergency Medicine Institute, Chișinău, Rep. Moldova) at the launch event of the Interreg | CAPDR🇷🇴 – ADR Chișinău🇲🇩 project at the Palace of the Republic in Chișinău on September 11, 2025.
100 economic opportunities for the development of the Moldova Region on the A7 Highway route
Thursday, September 11, 2025 – At the Palace of the Republic in Chișinău, the launch conference of the project “Transfer of Good Practices and Strengthening Administrative Capacity in Regional Development Policy between Romania and the Republic of Moldova,” funded by the Interreg NEXT Romania – Republic of Moldova Program, took place.
The event, organized in partnership between the Center for Analysis and Planning of Regional Development (CAPDR) and the Regional Development Agency of Chișinău (ADR Chișinău), brought together representatives of public administration, regional development experts, and decision-makers from both countries.
Speaker:
Mihai CIOCANU – Deputy Director, Emergency Medicine Institute Chișinău, Republic of Moldova
Emergency Medicine Institute – A Pillar of National Health
During the CAPDR–ADR Chișinău conference held on September 11 at the Palace of the Republic, Mihai Ciocanu, Deputy Director of the Emergency Medicine Institute (IMU), presented the significant contribution of European projects and international partners in modernizing the medical infrastructure in the Republic of Moldova.
“I greet you on behalf of the largest medical staff in the Republic of Moldova – the Emergency Medicine Institute, which has 2,800 employees and performs over 26-27 thousand surgical interventions annually, that is, between 80 and 90 per day.”
The institute, considered a strategic national institution, has implemented investment projects worth over 400 million lei (20 million euros) in the past four years.
Funding Sources and International Support
One third of these investments come from European funds, one third from contributions of development partners, and the rest from the Government of the Republic of Moldova. Among the supporters were the World Bank, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the World Health Organization, and other UN agencies.
“I have listed these to emphasize that at the base of all these investment projects were the projects financed by the European Union.”
Major Projects: SMURD, Modern Operating Block, and Intensive Care
Among the key achievements, Ciocanu highlighted:
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SMURD-2 Project, carried out together with the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations in Romania, which led to the construction of the Emergency Reception Unit. “Through this project, we accessed approximately 31 million lei (1.5 million euros) from European funds and an additional 3 million euros from partners for advanced equipment.”
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Construction of an ultramodern operating block with 15 modular operating rooms, funded by the Government of the Republic of Moldova and equipped with support from JICA. “This is one of the most modern operating blocks in the region… infectious complications have decreased threefold in the past two years.”
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Strengthening the intensive care and resuscitation department, which has 72 beds and consumes half of the institute’s annual budget, estimated at 40-45 million euros. “Currently, we have the largest department in the country, where over 3,000 critically ill patients transferred from other regional hospitals are treated annually.”
The equipment includes ECMO systems, artificial heart, and advanced pulmonary ventilation, enabling the saving of patients in critical condition.
Lessons Learned in Project Management
At the end of his presentation, Ciocanu outlined three key conclusions drawn from the experience of implementing European projects:
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Visionary Leadership – “An organization that wishes to implement projects must have a visionary management team.”
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Dedicated Fundraising Team – IMU has a team of five people who work full-time to identify and write projects.
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Projects with Real Impact for People – “Do not focus only on infrastructure, but on projects that bring benefits to the population. We do not implement projects for ourselves, but for better health for Romanians in the Republic of Moldova.”
Conclusion
Mihai Ciocanu’s intervention demonstrated, through concrete examples and clear data, that European investments and collaborations with international partners are not just statistics or numbers on paper, but represent saved lives, elevated medical standards, and increased confidence in the healthcare system of the Republic of Moldova.
Through the modernization of operating blocks, the provision of state-of-the-art equipment, and the expansion of intensive care capacity, the Emergency Medicine Institute has become a success model that can be replicated in other fields.
This experience confirms that good practices transferred through European projects have a direct and lasting impact on people’s quality of life. At the same time, the IMU example highlights the importance of a visionary management team and a people-centered approach, not just infrastructure-focused.
