Seaforth Health Centre Adopted By Seprod Foundation And Canco Ltd.

The Seaforth Health Centre in St. Thomas has been officially adopted by the Seprod Foundation and Canco Ltd., under the Ministry of Health and Wellness Adopt-a-Clinic Programme.

Speaking at the ceremony, which was held on June 17 at the facility, Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, thanked both entities for their combined commitment to the facility of $6 million over three years.

“They have demonstrated the kind of corporate social responsibility that is essential to our ongoing efforts to enhance the public health system and particularly at a time when we are faced with the challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.

“This funding will not only support the renovation of the facility but also the purchase of needed clinical and office equipment as well as maintenance,” the Minister added.

For her part, Executive Director of the Seprod Foundation, Lisa D’Oyen, said that St. Thomas and the community of Seaforth are very special to the Foundation.

“In addition to Seaforth being home to the Serge Island Dairy Farm, the largest dairy farm in the English-speaking Caribbean for over 50 years, Seprod has been supporting Educational and community-driven initiatives since the formation of the Foundation over five years ago,” she said.

The Executive Director said it was only fitting that Seprod was deepening its investment in the community through the adoption of the Seaforth Health Centre, pointing out that capacity issues have been identified and will be addressed, and that this will be done while ensuring that each of the clinical spaces are fit for purpose.

Miss D’Oyen commended the Ministry, the Health for Life and Wellness Foundation and the Adopt-a-Clinic Programme for successfully engaging the private sector to improve the provision and access to primary healthcare.

“This Public-Private partnership and community engagement is critical, especially at this moment,” she said.

Meanwhile, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Canco Ltd., Norman McDonald, congratulated the Ministry for the Adopt-a-Clinic initiative.

“Clinics all over the country provide a very valuable service to their communities and they deserve our support,” he said.

Mr. McDonald said that there was no other option for his entity than to adopt the Seaforth Health Centre, as his organisation has been a neighbour of the health facility since 1986.

“All of our cuts and bruises and accidents are dealt with right here,” the Chairman and CEO said, adding that many of Canco’s staff members, some of whom live in the community, are regulars at the clinic for their primary healthcare needs.

Canco Ltd. operates under the label of Linstead Market.

A Redevelopment Plan was crafted and recently updated in response to the exponential growth of the community and this is expected to facilitate expansion of health services to satisfy the changing needs of the community.

The Seaforth Health Centre has an average weekly patient load of approximately 1,000 and serves a population of about 30,000, with patients coming from areas such as Upper and Lower York, Soho, Danvers Pen and even as far as Trinityville and Cedar Valley.