DALLEY
MANDEVILLE, Manchester:
NEWLY-APPOINTED MINISTER of Health, Horace Dalley, toured a number of health facilities, including the Mandeville Regional Hospital, after meeting with the region's senior health officials at the Bloomfield Great House in Mandeville on Thursday, April 6.
Minister Dalley told The Gleaner that there are "many challenges" facing the Health Ministry in the region, but he was, however, impressed with the overall strides made to improve health care delivery. He said that he will be moving to have a "critical care unit" in place at the Mandeville Hospital.
While the hospital is rated as one of the best in the island, there have been calls over the years for an extensive critical care unit and a dialysis machine. Persons needing to use a dialysis unit must travel to Kingston after being placed on a waiting list or, alternatively, enlisting the service of a private firm at high costs. During the last outbreak of leptospirosis in the parish, a disease spread mostly by rats, infected persons who needed the machine to clean their blood had to get this service done at private firms or be taken to the Kingston Public Hospital.
During his tenure as Minister of Health, member of Parliament for Central Manchester, John Junor, indicated that a critical care unit was high on the agenda for Mandeville Hospital once funding was identified. He said at the time that the unit was a priority due to the high number of traffic accidents that is taking place, followed by stabbings and shootings. He said he was also mindful of pregnant women and senior citizens who would need to use a critical care unit for recovery from surgery or other medical complications.
In the meantime, Minister Dalley said he will be touring all the health facilities across the island and meeting with their staff to get a better understanding of their strengths and weaknesses.
