The transfer of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Panama (UP) to land adjacent to the City of Health continues pending administrative progress, while the university authorities wait to finalize the payments related to the preparation of the plans for the new headquarters.
During an intervention before the Budget Commission of the National Assembly, the rector of the University of Panama, José Emilio Moreno Ramos, reported that the faculty has land in the City of Health, like the Faculty of Nursing. However, he explained that the plans are pending payment and that the institution hopes that the corresponding procedures will allow the project to continue.
The initiative contemplates an approximate investment of $100 million for the construction of the new facilities, whose purpose is to improve the training conditions of future health professionals.
Payment of plans, pending
During the session, deputy José Pérez Barboni asked if the reduction in the university budget for 2026 affected the payments linked to the transfer of the Faculty of Medicine and if the financial situation of the institution could compromise its future investments.
City of Health.
In response, the administrative vice-rector clarified that the supplementary credit supported before the commission does not include payments to the company in charge of executing the project related to the plans for the new headquarters.
The official indicated that the State committed to pay approximately 38% of the total value of the contract. He also pointed out that the university carried out the institutional steps to comply with that commitment, although the process still requires progress before the Comptroller General of the Republic.
During his intervention, he did not specify the amount pending payment or establish a date to complete the procedure. He also did not present a timeline for the start of construction.
The Rector of the University of Panama, José Emilio Moreno Ramos.
Practical training in the City of Health
One of the objectives of the transfer is to facilitate students to carry out their rotations and professional practices in the offices and operating rooms of the Social Security Fund (CSS), an institution that historically maintains a collaborative relationship with the University of Panama.
The proposal seeks to bring academic training closer to medical care scenarios and strengthen the practical preparation of students. In addition, the new facilities include equipment with the latest technology, with the purpose of offering teaching conditions in line with the standards of developed countries.
The rector also expressed his interest in seeing the project of the Faculty of Nursing come to fruition, which has land in the same sector. Both projects, as he explained, would expand training opportunities for students of these careers.
A project with a history since 2023
The initiative to build a new headquarters for the Faculty of Medicine has a contractual history since 2023. In that year, the then rector of the University of Panama, Eduardo Flores Castro, signed a contract for $2,993,735.18.
The agreement contemplated the studies, the design and development of the preliminary project, the preparation of the construction plans, the breakdown of the prices of the work and the technical specifications for the new faculty, planned on land adjacent to the City of Health.
The new headquarters of Medicine in figures
$100
million
Approximate investment planned for the project
38%
Of the value of the plans contract committed by the State
1953
Year in which the Faculty of Medicine began
30
Students in the first class of Medicine
The transfer responds to the need to have adequate facilities for the training of health professionals. However, the information presented to the Budget Committee does not specify the current status of that contract nor does it allow us to establish whether it corresponds to the same financial commitment mentioned by the university authorities during the session.
A faculty with more than seven decades of history
The Faculty of Medicine of the University of Panama began its activities in 1953, with an enrollment of 30 students studying Medicine. Later, it incorporated other academic options, including Medical Technology, Nutrition and Dietetics, and technical training in Radiology and Medical Emergencies.
Currently, the faculty has an approximate population of between 1,700 and 2,000 students.
During the session, Deputy Barboni highlighted the academic trajectory of the institution and pointed out the importance of its facilities corresponding to the preparation of the professionals it trains.
