Goals and perspectives in the clinical setting

With regard to the specialty of infectiology, we report the creation of a transversal Infectious Diseases service, bringing together infectious disease specialists and outpatient clinics at the four regional sites. This is a decisive step in harmonizing the care of complex infectiological patients throughout the EOC. The first units of the service have been established, which include the Immunocompromised Unit, the Outpatient and Home Treatment Unit, and the Travel Medicine Unit.

Among the strengths of the service are noteworthy inpatient counseling in all medical disciplines, participation in multidisciplinary boards, close collaboration with the EOLAB Microbiology service, common guidelines for antibiotic therapy, and scientific research in clinical settings.

Another important initiative was the creation of the Institute of Family Medicine, implemented in collaboration with USI and the OMCT. This institute, which aims to be a center of excellence for family medicine, includes an academic chair and two outpatient clinics, with a main site at the Ospedale Italiano in Lugano and a secondary site at the San Giovanni Hospital in Bellinzona.

Dermatology at the EOC has been officially recognized as a Category B training center, a recognition that confirms the excellence of its clinical and educational track record.

The Colorectal Cancer Center of Southern Switzerland reports that the Lugano Regional Hospital obtained the Certification issued by the OnkoZert Institute. Surgeons from the Urology cross-sectional service performed 89 robotic prostatectomy procedures at the Lugano and Bellinzona sites, corresponding to the largest annual caseload since the introduction of the Da Vinci robot in the EOC back in 2007.

Starting in 2024, patients in need of knee implantation can take advantage of the new Velys™ robotic system available to the Orthopaedics and Traumatology Service at Lugano Italian Hospital.

The integration of the angiology activity into the Vascular Surgery and Angiology service has improved the outreach service, providing the entire population of Ticino with easy access to examinations and treatment, while maintaining the principle of centralization for the treatment of the most complex cases.

Starting with the services of PS, anesthesia and intensive care medicine at Bellinzona Regional Hospital, PDTAs (Diagnostic-Therapeutic-Assistance Pathways) for certain diseases such as cardiac arrest, respiratory failure and shock have been defined and then adopted throughout the Department. PDTAs are standardized pathways of linear and planned care of patients with a given disease and aim to improve the quality, safety and efficiency of care by decreasing the variability of clinical practices for patients with the same diagnosis.

The Clinic for Palliative and Supportive Care (CCPS) has been recognized as the only center in Ticino to conduct specialty examinations for physicians who want to train in palliative medicine, joining four other Swiss university centers (Geneva, Lausanne, Zurich and Bern).

In 2024, the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics received ERAS (Enhanced Recovery After Surgery) certification for the perioperative management of patients undergoing hysterectomy at the EOC sites in Lugano, Bellinzona, and Mendrisio. During its implementation, the application of ERAS protocols (the result of interdisciplinary and interprofessional work) has already resulted in a decrease in complications and a reduction in length of stay in patients undergoing hysterectomy.