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Their Excellencies Governor-General, the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen, and Lady Allen brought Christmas cheer to the patients and staff of the Bustamante Hospital for Children on Monday (December 13) during a visit to the facility. Their Excellencies handed out gifts to the children and interacted with them and the hospital staff. Sir Patrick expressed pleasure at being able to...

Worker of the Year at the Mandeville Regional Hospital, Ellorine Palmer, says she is ever present at work, and that has contributed to her receiving the top award at the health institution. "I am dedicated to my work, I am ever early and I don't leave at the time that I am to leave, because there are other things to...

With more elderly Jamaicans suffering from the degenerative brain disease Alzheimer's, the Ministry of Health is looking to add drugs for the treatment of the condition to the Jamaica Drug for the Elderly Programme (JADEP). "We are exploring the addition of certain drugs for the treatment of Alzheimer's because of the increasing number of elderly persons, who are presenting with...

Over seventeen thousand (17,000) persons enrolled in the Jamaica Drug for the Elderly Programme (JADEP) during the last financial year. From January to November this year, thirteen thousand three hundred and twelve (13,312) new persons joined the JADEP programme, which now has a total of two hundred and twenty two thousand six hundred and five (222,605) beneficiaries. The announcement was...

The project to be undertaken as part of this year's National Prayer Vigil, involves assisting with the purchasing a blood analysing machine for the Princess Margaret Hospital in St. Thomas, estimated to cost $1.5 million, Chairman of the National Prayer Vigil Committee, Rev Dr. Roy J. Henry, has informed. "We are going to be asking the congregation at the Vigil...

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Dr. Christopher Tufton, says the recent expansion of the warehouse at the Ministry's Export Complex, at the Norman Manley International Airport, is an attempt to take full advantage of Jamaica's earning potential in the export market. Noting that the agricultural sector produced $106 billion worth of goods last year, representing a 12 per cent...

A total of 44 complaints of abuse were received by the Office of the Children's Advocate (OCA) for the period September to November, 2010. Speaking at a press briefing on December 3, at the OCA's Downtown Kingston offices, Investigating Officer at the agency, Mr. Courtney Berry said the reports of abuse vary from sexual and physical to abuse in the...

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Jean Dixon says the proposal to make the Pesticides Control Authority (PCA) an independent body, come April 2011, will help to create a more efficient and effective regulatory agency. "It will also give the Board and management the opportunity to examine the strategic plan for the organisation," she said, while addressing the...

More than 150 persons in St. Mary received free HIV testing, as the parish joined the rest of the international community in observing World AIDS Day, on December 1. The testing, which was carried out as part of a general health check up programme, was conducted by the St. Mary Health Department, in Port Maria. The event also provided an...

When the Gift of Life Cardiac Centre opens in 2011 at the Bustamante Hospital for Children (BHC), it will be the only one of its kind in the Caribbean. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the hospital, Beverley Needham, said a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was recently signed with multiple stakeholders, including Chain of Hope in the United Kingdom, Caribbean Heart...

Prime Minister Bruce Golding has emphasized that despite Jamaica's success in the fight against HIV/AIDS, there is no room for complacency. He expressed appreciation to the Global Fund, noting that without this financial support, Jamaica could see a reversal in the downward trends in the spread of the disease. Mr. Golding said there is an estimated 50,000 Jamaicans with the...

Since the Government of Jamaica abolished user fees for children under 18 in 2007, the Bustamante Hospital for Children has seen an increase of 30 per cent patients visiting the accident and emergency department, and another 12 per cent increase in admissions. "These figures are a clear indication of the frightening reality that there were parents who were previously unable...