EULALEE THOMPSON
"WE KEEP asking for money to send away a baby with a hole in the heart; we can't keep relying on charity to resolve our problems, development has to be sustainable" - Dr. Dainia Baugh, president, Heart Institute of the Caribbean.
Heart disease is apparently not one of those sexy illnesses because it does not grab the headlines or attract funding like some other diseases. However, it is actually the leading cause of death and disability in Jamaica and around the world. In fact, The National Policy for the Promotion of Healthy Lifestyles points out that the cardiovascular diseases (this includes diseases related to the heart) diabetes, obesity and cancer now account for 56 per cent of deaths annually in Jamaica.
It is these kinds of statistics that led Dr. Ernest Madu, an expert in non-invasive cardiovascular diagnostic from the U.S. and a team of mostly returning Jamaican doctors to set up on Balmoral Avenue, St. Andrew, a comprehensive "heart care centre" known as the Heart Institute of the Caribbean (HIC).
NECESSITY
"There is definitely a need for a centre like this. Heart disease has been the number one cause of death in the region for quite a while ... it is the major cause of death and disability, the leading cause of hospitalisation ... Despite that there is no centre, the people who can afford to go abroad do and then the other people suffer silently," said Dr. Madu, chairman and chief executive officer of HIC.
The centre, representing an investment of nearly $180 million, offers comprehensive cardiac care in spanking new rooms, each with cutting-edge technology, backed by health professionals at the top of their field in cardiology.
Some of the non-invasive diagnostic tests (for heart care) include echocardiogram, exercise stress echocardiogram, dobutamine stress echocardiogram, electrocardiogram, holter monitor, event recorder, carotid doppler examination, and cardiac CT angiography.
Dr. Madu explained that the echocardiography (that includes the exercise stress echocardiography, dobutamine stress echocardiogram and dobutamine transesophageal echocardiogram) is comprehensive and the first in the region to offer a full range of services. During this high-tech echocardiogram, sound waves produce images of the heart's structure and function, ultimately allowing the physician to detect problems, if they exist.
The centre also offers invasive diagnostic tests and therapy such as coronary angiogram (cardiac catheterisation) used to locate blocked or narrowed areas in blood vessels and other sophisticated therapy related to defibrillator devices, pacemakers and radiofrequency catheter.
These high-tech, world-class, cutting-edge technology, right here in Jamaica and in one place, most people can't even pronounce some of these tests much more afford them.
But HIC's president Dr. Dainia Baugh's quick response to the question of affordability is "who can afford not to?"
LOCAL CARE CHEAPER
"I believe it is always going to be cheaper to access care in your local environment, than it would be to travel outside to try to access it. So, in an environment where nothing of that nature exists, you already set up a hurdle to care, as far as not only access but affordability of that access; because you have to add in plane fare, hotel bills, and time off from work to go and get what is really routine care, outside of the country ... So you drop that barrier for a lot of people and you have improved care," Dr. Baugh said.
Dr. Madu also explained that the centre has created the infrastructure to take care of persons with cardiovascular disease and related illnesses, and has brought in expertise to create the system to make it affordable and accessible to a wider segment of the population.
"Rather than having those few people with the resources always going to Florida, and North America for treatment, we have addressed the issue of access and affordability," he said.
They explained that on a daily basis the centre provides care at a discounted rate, "waiving charges or adding on a test that we don't charge the patients.
"We have priced the service to open up the market..the bottom line is that we will not deny care to anyone because of financial reasons... we discount care on a needs basis," Dr. Madu said.
Other cardiologists/physicians on the team include Drs. Edwin Tulloch-Reid, Paul Edwards, Charmaine Scott, Marshall Tulloch-Reid, Mikael Tulloch-Reid, Richard Wesley Bullock, Miguel Garcia, Jacqueline Duncan and Registered Nurse Andrea Hunt.
You can send your comments to eulalee.thompson@gleanerjm.com.
