El Salvador’s Ministry of Health (Minsal) officially inaugurated the new Specialized Center for Non-Communicable Diseases (CENT) in San Salvador, backed by a $12.6 million investment. Situated along Calle Zacamil—strategic positioning between Zacamil National Hospital and the ISSS Polyclinic—the three-story facility was developed to resolve a long-standing structural bottleneck in the nation’s public healthcare system, bridging the gap between primary community health centers and emergency-burdened general hospitals.
Operating with nearly 100 health professionals, including medical specialists, nutritionists, psychologists, and social workers, CENT provides targeted diagnostic and therapeutic services across key disciplines such as cardiology, endocrinology, nephrology, internal medicine, and oncology screening. Patients will be integrated into the system via digital referrals through the Integrated Health System (SIS) from their local health centers, ensuring structured appointments according to medical priority before returning to primary care for ongoing management. Health Minister Francisco Alabi highlighted that the facility offers a targeted intermediate solution: “Hospitals have their emergency care dynamics (…) and this generates an excess of patient inflow, while primary care lacks resolutive technical capacity.”
Alongside the opening of CENT, public health officials unveiled major technological upgrades to strengthen the country’s oncology network. The expansion includes an $8 million renovation of the National Radiotherapy Center (CNRT)—adding a third linear accelerator and surface-guided radiation therapy (SGRT)—as well as the deployment of the public sector’s first $4.65 million PET-CT unit. This advanced diagnostic equipment will allow clinicians to detect early tumor progression and tailor complex treatment plans for thousands of cancer patients annually.
The establishment of CENT and its accompanying diagnostic upgrades mark a significant leap forward in expanding specialized public medicine across the San Salvador metropolitan region. Minsal Director of Specialized Care, Dr. Marbel Magaña, emphasized the unified model, stating that “this center is a model that integrates specialized care and services in a single place (…) facilitating access for people who will be referred from different health establishments under established clinical criteria.”