Slovak Hospital Records 42°C Room Temperature as Patients Swelter and Minister Calls Air Conditioning a 'Comfort' Issue

A hospital in Ružinov, a district of Bratislava, recorded temperatures exceeding 42 degrees Celsius in patient rooms during a recent heatwave, exposing a severe lack of cooling infrastructure in Slovakia's public healthcare facilities. Doctors and nurses have been forced to pool their own money to purchase portable air conditioning units and hang bedsheets over windows in an attempt to provide relief to vulnerable patients. Medical staff warn that the extreme heat poses serious health risks beyond discomfort — in tropical conditions, the risk of infections rises sharply and patients' wounds can deteriorate rather than heal, turning what should be a recovery environment into a dangerous one. Despite the crisis conditions on hospital wards, Slovakia's health minister has described air conditioning in hospitals as a matter of comfort rather than medical necessity, a characterization that has drawn sharp criticism from healthcare workers on the front lines. The situation highlights a longstanding underinvestment in Slovak hospital infrastructure, leaving medical staff to improvise solutions to protect patients from life-threatening heat.