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A number of emergency personnel, who respond to traumatic situations, particularly major disasters, on Tuesday, March 19, benefited from training in Psychological First Aid (PFA). The workshop, hosted by the Ministry of Health in partnership with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the University of the West Indies (UWI), examined practical ways in which responders can provide emotional and...

The South East Regional Health Authority (SERHA) has injected funds into the upgrading and improvement of equipment and infrastructure at the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH), to improve the level of service provided to the hundreds of thousands of persons, who seek healthcare at the institution. SERHA Chairman, Lyttleton Shirley, said the minor operating rooms in the Accident and Emergency Department...

Health Minister, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, says the Ministry welcomes all partnerships that seek to improve health care delivery and provision of services to the people of Jamaica. “This is an indication that we are all taking responsibility for health care in this country and we see the value of partnerships and participation to move the health sector forward,” he...

The functions of the Regional Health Authorities will be among the issues put under the microscope, when the Ministry of Health begins discussions on health care reform. Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, told members of the Jamaica Association of Health Service Executives (JAHSE) on Wednesday, March 13, that he intends to undertake the process of health care reform...

Regulations seeking to establish a Tribunal to which any person aggrieved by the decisions of the National Health Fund (NHF) Board, may appeal, were passed in the House of Representatives on March 12. In his remarks, Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, explained that the Regulations provide for the constitutional, proper administration and overall function of the tribunal. “In...

Patients who use the physiotherapy department at the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) will soon have better facilities to assist with their recovery. Hospital staff will also benefit from improved and additional facilities from which to provide the services. This is being provided for under a contract of $93.6 million, to extend and renovate the department, in order...

Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, says the development of a National Infant and Young Child Feeding Policy will assist in reducing mortality and morbidity of infants and children by addressing their nutritional needs. Speaking at a validation workshop for the policy at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston on Thursday, March 6, Dr. Ferguson said it will...

The country’s cancer control programme is expected to be strengthened following an assessment by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Since Monday, March 4, a high-level team from IAEA has been carrying out a comprehensive evaluation of the country’s cancer control capacity in the areas of cancer planning, cancer information, prevention, diagnosis and treatment, palliative care, and training. Coming out...

Medical practitioners will benefit from training in colon cancer treatment and prevention at the 2013 Colon Cancer Medical Symposium on Sunday, March 10. The session will take place at the Basic Medical Sciences Building in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of the West Indies’ Mona campus, and will get underway at 8:30 a.m. It is being organised by...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller says the development of the cardiac programme at the Bustamante Hospital for Children will place Jamaica among those countries with highly developed specialist medical facilities for children. “Our children constitute a special segment of the population. They deserve the best care and treatment as the health of our people represents the wealth...

Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson on Friday, February 22, signed a $17 .8 million contract for the upgrading of the Darliston Health Centre, in Westmoreland. Under the contract, which was signed with Maxwell Construction Company, the health facility is to be upgraded to a centre of excellence. The work, which is to be completed in four months, represents...

The Surgical Ward and the Burn Unit at the Bustamante Hospital for Children have been refurbished at a cost of approximately $5.7 million. The facilities were officially re-opened by the Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, during a ceremony at the hospital on Arthur Wint Drive, in Kingston, on Thursday, February 21. Dr. Ferguson said the refurbishment is part...