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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
Contract Signed for PMH Renovation and Expansion. Seated second left, signing, is Public Hospitals Authority Managing Director Herbert Brown. Standing centre is Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Perry Christie; with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Works and Urban Development Philip Davis (second left); Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Dr. Daniel Johnson (third right); Public Hospitals Authority Chairman Frank Smith (second right). Photo: Eric Rose / BIS
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NASSAU, The Bahamas – The redevelopment of the Princess Margaret Hospital and subsequent expansion of services, will allow local public healthcare officials to keep pace with the changing demands of public healthcare in The Bahamas.
These include the demands associated with aging populations, changing patterns of disease, an increasingly mobile healthcare workforce, the introduction of new medical technologies and pharmaceuticals, and increasing public expectations with respect to the hospital experience and the quality of healthcare.
United Nations and World Health Organization (WHO) statistics show that approximately 600 million persons worldwide are currently aged 60 years and older. This number is expected to almost triple by 2050 to approximately 2 billion persons.
“As the advance of scientific medicine has progressed, we have seen profound changes in the quality of care and medical technologies employed throughout the Princess Margaret Hospital. There have been revolutions in surgery, anesthesia and asepsis, Imaging X-rays, CT Scans and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and laboratory medicine among many other fields and with each advance in medical science, PMH has grown and evolved,” Public Hospitals Authority (PHA) Chairman, Senator Frank Smith said, September 28, 2016, at the Princess Margaret Hospital during a contract signing ceremony for major renovation and expansion of PMH.
“In taking a strategic view of healthcare and of hospital care in The Bahamas more specifically, we have to adapt to many shifting, but coalescing factors. These include aging populations, changing patterns of disease, an increasingly mobile healthcare workforce, the introduction of new medical technologies and pharmaceuticals, increasing public expectations with respect to the hospital experience and to the quality of healthcare.”
Senator Smith said Wednesday’s contract signing and the future works the Public Hospitals Authority has on its drawing board for the Princess Margaret Hospital and other public healthcare facilities throughout the nation, are all part of the Government of The Bahamas’ plan to address the fact that some of the nation’s healthcare facilities are aging or inadequate when it comes to meeting increased demands, and changing best practices for care and services.
Wednesday’s contract signing calls for the complete renovation and expansion of the Maternity Ward at the Princess Margaret Hospital in addition to major renovations to the Male Surgical Wards as well as the Legacy Entrance of the hospital.
“Even with the significant renovations and upgrades made in the past, many areas of the Princess Margaret Hospital can be counted in this number,” Senator Smith said. “This is one reason the PHA is committed to continuing its partnership with international health planners as we move forward with a Master Plan for the redevelopment of the entire Princess Margaret Hospital campus as well as the hospital’s services and workflow.
“These major capital projects represent another significant leap forward with respect to the upgrading of the hospital’s physical plant,” Senator Smith added.
Senator Smith said the implementation of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) through the National Health Insurance Plan, will allow the Public Hospitals Authority to accelerate its planning and design work with respect to key projects that are expected to result in a “significant, positive impact on our hospital facilities and services” as part of the ongoing strengthening of the country’s health system.
“This project is one among many others that have benefitted from our national programme of health systems strengthening. The Master Plan will proceed in phases that will span a prolonged period; however, this project will usher in an important initial phase of this process.
“The Princess Margaret Hospital is a benchmark healthcare institution for Bahamians, The quality of care delivered at the bedside, the access to services by patients and their loved ones, the character of the interactions between staff and clients and the condition of its infrastructure informs the impression the public holds with respect to the nature and quality of public healthcare in this country.
“I am confident that not only the Administration and Staff of PMH, but every Bahamian, will feel a deep sense of satisfaction as we prepare to launch this major capital project at the hospital,” Senator Smith added.
Public Hospitals Authority Chairman Frank Smith. Photo: Eric Rose / BIS
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© Copyright 2016 by thebahamasweekly.com
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