WITHIN SAINT LUCIA, WE ALSO HAVE RELATIONSHIP WITH EXTERNAL AGENCIES FOR TRANSFER. THE ST. JUDE HOSPITAL IS AN EXTREMELY IMPORTANT COMPONENT OF OUR HEALTH SYSTEM, KEEPING WITH THE GOVERNMENT'S MAIN NATIONAL PRIORITY FOR HEALTH

The healthcare system in St. Lucia is made up of a varied network of systems, institutions and programmes, both within the public sector and also the private sector. And this is brought through our hospitals, of which we have three; two statutory hospitals, that is the St. Jude Hospital and the Millennium Heights Medical Complex and then the Tapion Hospital, which is our private facility. Within the Primary Health Care, we have a range of health facilities ranging from level one to level four; our level four health facilities are our district or community hospitals and polyclinics and our lower level health facilities are within the community, that is Community Wellness Centres. And these services together with a wide range of private providers from medical services to diagnostics as well within the country are many services, which we can't manage.

Within St. Lucia, we also have relationships with external agencies for transfer. The St. Jude Hospital, which is located in the south, is an extremely important component of our health system, keeping with the government's main national priority for health, that is Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and also our national Strategic Plan for Health for 2025 to 2035, which both of them speak to ensuring accessible, affordable and quality healthcare to the population. St. Jude Hospital, which is located in the south, provides secondary care services.

One of the very important pillars in relation to providing Universal Health Coverage is health equity. So the commissioning of St. Jude Hospital to the refurbished site will ensure that the residents in the south have access to quality of care within a facility that can provide the care at the standard that we need to provide it at. It is important within the island for the population that we serve that we ensure that both of our health facilities are able to provide healthcare at a specific standard, that is the secondary care services such as surgery, delivery, dialysis, and the capacity to manage emergencies.

St. Jude Hospital is located in the south where our international airport is located, so it is also important that access to care, if there are any emergencies related to international travel, we are able to manage it. So, the Ministry of Health is working very closely with the committee at the St. Jude Hospital to ensure that the services that will be provided meet the standard of care so that there is equity within the north and the south of the island.

The Ministry of Health is expecting that the full commissioning of the St. Jude Hospital will support both our national strategic plan and the government's priority for Universal Health Coverage. We have generally two levels of care within Saint Lucia. And one of the areas that's important for Universal Health Coverage is sustainable health financing and also reform. Apart from us providing quality health services, we have to ensure that it's done in an effective, efficient, cost-effective way because we have to ensure sustainable financing to manage health care. Secondary Health Care services are much more expensive in their provision as compared to Primary Health Care services. One of the priorities for the Ministry of Health, which falls under the Office of the Chief Medical Officer is doing the necessary assessments of district hospitals, polyclinics. The Ministry is working on the expansion for expanded hours and also expanded services to include diagnostic services. This will definitely support the improvement in services at the hospitals.

One of the issues which we have been managing over the last few years are lots of complaints coming out of the emergency rooms at the hospitals. This issue has to do with the limitations within care, within primary care, especially when it comes to diagnostics and the limitations in our opening hours. The Ministry of Health making the decision to extend hours of operations within key Primary Health Care facilities and also the services, would help to better manage the needs of the population. Health facilities such as Gros-Islet Polyclinic, the Dr. Betty Wells Urban Polyclinic, Dennery Hospital, Soufriere Hospital and Vieux-Fort Wellness Centre, if there is an increase in the services provided and also the operating times, then patients will be able to access care closer to their communities and it will reduce some of the complaints and the poor outcomes we get when patients wait extended hours within the hospitals. This will now allow the hospitals to concentrate their services on secondary care.

 

The hospitals would now be able to manage emergencies, deliveries, surgical procedures, the more complex hospital-based services and we should get improved outcomes given an improved patient satisfaction. So it will improve quite a few of the pillars towards Universal Health Coverage. There will be better access since persons would be able to access those services closer to their home. It will also be more affordable because most of the services within the Primary Health Care are either free of charge or a lot more affordable and it will be more economical for the government as well, since the provision of those services within Primary Health Care is at a lower cost as well and quality of care would be improved as there would be reduced waiting times and there will better management of the lower level services within Primary Health Care as well.

The Ministry of Health commends the staff at the St. Jude Hospital for the work they have been doing and managing over the last few years within the stadium. So The reopening the St. Jude Hospital at the Augier Site, the level of motivation, satisfaction and the level of the providers giving care would also boost the quality of care that is provide there. When the St Jude Hospital is fully commissioned, it would mean services would be provided in a safe environment that is actually set out for hospital care. The spaces are a lot bigger, the equipment would be new and updated equipment, the processes as well are being updated. The clinical protocols are also updated and we are looking to widen the services that are provided at the St. Jude Hospital.

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