Ageing KPH needs capital injection

Minister of Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton has promised that there will be an assessment to correct a possible defect at the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH). 

This after Opposition Spokesperson on Health and Wellness, Dr Morais Guy, called for all operating theatres in public hospitals to be adequately maintained to deliver quality patient services.

Guy, through a release, said he had received disturbing information that one of the KPH theatres ceased operation three days ago because of water leaking from the ceiling. He said he was also informed that the KPH had reportedly run out of medical oxygen within the last three days, forcing the postponement of scheduled surgeries.  

“I fully appreciate and understand the concerns and the complaints when these things happen. I will never try to excuse it away. The fact is these problems are entrenched and are a direct result of the age of these facilities and the need for us to really overhaul now,” Tufton said.  

He stated that KPH, which is more than 200 years old, is in need of much work, and if this is not done, the health facility could end up like the Cornwall Regional Hospital in St James. He, however, stated that this repair could cost the government billions of dollars.   

“What you don’t want is for it to collapse on you as Cornwall Regional has done because what happened to Cornwall is that between limited maintenance and just the ageing plant, after 50 years, which is just about the lifespan of a building, it just stopped and people just couldn’t occupy it,” he said.  

Tufton said that he is in dialogue with the ministry's permanent secretary and chief medical officer to determine a starting date for the process to overhaul KPH. He added that Government has embarked on the largest overhauling of healthcare infrastructure since Independence.   
 “The new plant at Spanish Town, St Ann’s Bay, May Pen, the Adolescent and Paediatric at Cornwall, the overhauling of Cornwall Regional, and the build-out to take place at UHWI [University Hospital of the West Indies] all combined will see more than US$230 million over a five-year period,” he said.     

Guy said he was deeply concerned about the lack of oxygen, because it revealed that the administration is no longer concerned about the gas' supply as Jamaica is out of the heightened period of the COVID-19 pandemic. Tufton, however, stated that he was unable to respond to the allegation at this time, but would carry out checks to determine if the concern is valid. 

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