The providers of ambulance services must operate 24 hours a day, and must offer their services to all GHS beneficiaries who need transfer with an ambulance, when receiving such a request from any location in the areas controlled by the Republic of Cyprus. All calls will be made to the Ambulance Services Coordination Call Centre, which will coordinate all contracted ambulance services providers .
Beneficiaries should be transferred to the “nearest appropriate” A&E department, taking into consideration amongst others, the health status of the beneficiary, the speciality and medical treatment that may follow, the conditions and circumstances of the incident, the availability of the A&E departments and the beneficiary´s right to choose, if possible.
Direct Access – The beneficiary can access directly the ambulance services in the following cases:
- in case of an accident or an emergency
Access with referral - the beneficiary can access the ambulance services for scheduled transfers after obtaining a referral:
- from the personal doctor
- from the specialist doctor
- from the A&E Department
- from the hospital
The use of contracted ambulances services for all GHS beneficiaries isfree of charge, when used according to the abovementioned rules.