Saint Lucia: Health Ministry donates two medical equipment to St Jude Hospital 

The St. Jude Hospital received a donation of two significant medical equipment from the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Elderly Affairs, which is expected to strengthen the delivery of diagnostic tests in the laboratory at the hospital.

Saint Lucia: Health Ministry donates two medical equipment to St Jude Hospital 
Saint Lucia: Health Ministry donates two medical equipment to St Jude Hospital 

Castries, Saint Lucia: Residents in the south of the island will now have better options for diagnostic tests following the donation of equipment to enhance health services at the St. Jude Hospital.

The St. Jude Hospital received a donation of two significant medical equipment from the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Elderly Affairs, which is expected to strengthen the delivery of diagnostic tests in the laboratory at the hospital.

The two medical equipment donated to the Saint Jude Hospital is the hematology analyzer and the immunoassay analyzer. Acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health Jenny Daniel says this donation signifies the continuation of the ministry’s goal of strengthening the delivery of health services in Saint Lucia.

“We are acutely aware at the Ministry of Health of the extreme significance of St. Jude Hospital as a national hospital within the south of the island and the need to ensure that the service provision is in tune with the health service delivery expectations at the hospital. So, at the Ministry of Health, although we are a sister agency with oversight over the delivery of healthcare and not necessarily directly involved with the healthcare in St. Jude Hospital, we recognize the need for us to contribute and strengthen that sector in order to relieve pressures otherwise on our other areas within our institutions within the health sector.”

Minister for Health, Wellness and Elderly Affairs Moses Jn. Baptiste says the ministry will continue working with the St. Jude Hospital and ensure that health services provided to the patients are improved.

“The hematology analyzer and the immunoassay analyzer, I am sure, will cause our people to feel more confident in the healthcare service which will be provided to them. They know that we have challenges at the St. Jude Hospital, but when they feel that every week, that every month that we are trying our very best to improve the circumstances, I know that the confidence will continue to grow in our system, our doctors and in our workers in general.”

Medical Director of the St. Jude Hospital Dr Sybil Naitram-James, expressed immense gratitude to the Ministry of Health for the equipment and said this would assist them with meeting the required standards for accreditation on an international level.

“For quite some time, we have been working with frequent downtime on our current hematology machines, leaving us unable to offer critical emergency labs to our clients. This machine will be doing our basic complete blood count with a 5-part differential. The second machine is actually the most exciting one is our immunoassay analyzer, which we call the cliamaglumi 800. It will permit us to upgrade some of the tests that we are currently offering, but it also has the additional feature of being able to offer a number of other tests that we were unable to process locally.”

The new medical equipment will allow the St. Jude Hospital to test for cancer markers and hormonal testing here in Saint Lucia. The two medical equipment donated to the St. Jude Hospital is valued at EC $135, 000 dollars.