Public Health System Gets $48.7 Million Worth of Equipment
By: , October 6, 2025
Photo: Dave Reid
State Minister in the Ministry of Health and Wellness, Hon. Krystal Lee (second left), shakes hands with Jamaican-born philanthropist, Carol Picart (second right), during a medical equipment handover ceremony at the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH) in Kingston on Monday (September 29). The items, valued at $48.7 million, were donated by Ms. Picart in collaboration with the National Healthcare Enhancement Foundation (NHEF) under the Ministry. Sharing the moment are Chief Executive Officer, KPH, Barrington Graham (left) and South Eastern Regional Health Authority (SERHA) Regional Director, Lascelles Brown.
Photo: Dave Reid
State Minister in the Ministry of Health and Wellness, Hon. Krystal Lee (second left), listens to a point from Jamaican-born philanthropist, Carol Picart (second right), during a medical equipment handover ceremony at the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH) in Kingston on Monday (September 29). Sharing in the discussion are Chief Executive Officer, KPH, Barrington Graham (left) and South Eastern Regional Health Authority (SERHA) Regional Director, Lascelles Brown. The items, valued at $48.7 million, were donated by Ms. Picart in collaboration with the National Healthcare Enhancement Foundation (NHEF) under the Ministry.
Photo: Dave Reid
State Minister in the Ministry of Health and Wellness, Hon. Krystal Lee (left), engages in conversation with Jamaican-born philanthropist, Carol Picart, during a medical equipment handover ceremony at the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH) in Kingston on Monday (September 29). The items, valued at $48.7 million, were donated by Ms. Picart in collaboration with the National Healthcare Enhancement Foundation (NHEF) under the Ministry.The Full Story
Jamaica’s public health system has received a major boost through the donation of critical medical equipment valued at $48.7 million.
The items, contributed by Jamaican-born philanthropist Carol Picart in collaboration with the National Healthcare Enhancement Foundation (NHEF, include diagnostic equipment and machines to provide life-saving support for sick and premature newborns.
They will benefit the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH), Cornwall Regional Hospital in St. James, and Black River Hospital in St. Elizabeth.
State Minister in the Ministry of Health and Wellness where the NHEF falls, Hon. Krystal Lee, in expressing gratitude for the donation, noted the value of partnerships in strengthening the country’s health system.
“We know that whereas the health sector has been transformed… we still have a far way to go. It is these collaborative efforts and partnerships that will help us to get to where we need to be faster and strengthen [the] programmes that we have,” she said.
She was speaking at the handover of two ventilators and an endoscopy unit comprising a gastroscope and a colonoscope, valued at $34.6 million, at KPH’s North Street location on Monday (September 29).
Cornwall Regional and Black River hospitals will each receive a ventilator and an incubator valued at $5,571,800 and $1,502,000, respectively.
Ms. Picart, in her remarks, said she was motivated to give because of the urgent need for modern equipment in public hospitals and welcomed the opportunity to support her country.
“I think it’s just wanting to give back; I think that in some ways you’re always supposed to give back… at a place where you become accomplished, and that’s all it is. At this point it’s just being able to give good help,” she added.
Chief Executive Officer of KPH, Barrington Graham, expressed appreciation to Ms. Picart for her “generosity and kindness”.
Executive Director of the NHEF, Courtney Cephas, for his part, underscored the importance of the contribution within the Foundation’s wider mandate of enhancing healthcare delivery across Jamaica.