SNS sets historic record in surgeries in the Public Network during the year 2025, after reaching 629,173 surgical procedures and reporting a 34.3% increase compared to 2024.
According to the National Health Service (SNS), in 2025, 629,173 surgeries were performed in Public Network hospitals, compared to the 468,629 executed in 2024, representing a 160,544 intervention increase in a single year.
The data, disseminated in an institutional note, places the public health system before a volume of operations without precedents, driven by special sessions, expansion of operating rooms and hiring of medical and support staff.
Factors that explain why the SNS sets historic record in surgeries
Health sector sources point out that the elimination of postponed surgeries during the pandemic, along with reduction programs for waiting lists, has been key to the SNS setting historic record in surgeries in 2025.
- Extension of operating room hours, including evening and weekend sessions.
- Strengthening of services in regional hospitals to avoid patient transfers to Santo Domingo.
- Greater availability of supplies, equipment, and anesthesia, according to previous official reports.
Consulted specialists highlight that the 34.3% increase reflects both a post-pandemic recovery of surgical activity and a response to accumulated demand for elective and high-complexity procedures.
SNS sets historic record in surgeries and its impact on patients
The increase in surgeries in the Public Network has allowed for faster handling of cases of traumatology, gynecology, general surgery, and oncological procedures, areas where traditionally critical waiting lists were concentrated.
Health professionals warn, however, that the volume of operations must be accompanied by postoperative follow-up, sufficient recovery beds, and strengthening of intensive care units to ensure safe clinical results.
Regional comparison and pending challenges
Compared to other countries in the region, the total number of interventions reported by the SNS places the Dominican Public Network among the systems that have accelerated their surgical activity the most in recent years, especially in teaching hospitals and high-specialty hospitals.
However, medical guilds have insisted on the need to improve the geographical distribution of surgeons, anesthesiologists, and surgical nurses, as well as to strengthen primary care to avoid treatable pathologies from ending in emergency surgeries.
Transparency of data when the SNS sets historic record in surgeries
Civil society organizations have underscored the importance of authorities detailing the type of surgeries performed, the rate of complications, and the average waiting times, in order to evaluate with precision the scope of the announcement that the SNS sets historic record in surgeries.
Policy analysts indicate that having disaggregated information by province, sex, age, and surgical specialty would allow measuring whether the 34.3% increase translates into greater equity in access to health services.
While the SNS sets historic record in surgeries and celebrates the 34.3% increase in 2025, the immediate challenge is to sustain this level of surgical production, improve the quality of care, and ensure that the benefits reach the entire population that depends on the Public Network in a balanced way.
