Negril community accesses better health services, thanks to Rotary Club
Hundreds of residents of Negril and surrounding communities in Westmoreland are now able to access better health services following the renovation and upgrading of the Negril Health Centre and the recent donation of medical equipment and other items to the facility by the Rotary Club of Negril.
The renovation was undertaken by the Rotary Club of Negril under the Ministry of Health’s Adopt a Clinic programme last November at a cost of just over $12 million, while roughly $2 million worth of medical equipment and other items were presented to the clinic last week.
The funding for the projects was made available through the partnership donation from the Rotary Club of Negril, Rotary Club International, Rotary Clubs of Calgary and Airdrie, both in Canada, and a Rotary in the United States of America.
The Federal Government of Canada and the Jamaican Diaspora in Canada also participated in the project.
“The health department is honoured and privileged to have the Negril Health Centre adopted by the Rotary Club of Negril [in November 2020]. This partnership has been quite fruitful as it has yielded significant improvements in the facility’s infrastructure, in addition to providing critical medical equipment. This wide range of equipment is timely and will improve the quality of service offered to the populace as well as boost staff morale,” Novlin Leslie Little, parish manager for the Westmoreland Health Department, told the Jamaica
Observer West last week after
the donation.
The gifted items include a recliner chair, a state-of-theart 12- channel ECG machine, a fully equipped stainless steel otoscope, standing weighing scale with body mass index (BMI) and measuring rod, blood pressure signal manometer, a stainless steel multi-purpose utility cart and stainless steel instrument trays.
The health centre serves over 20,000 people from about 15 communities and roughly 100 clients daily.
Leslie said the items received from the Rotary Club of Negril last week were amongst “our top priority list of needed equipment such as dressing trays, adult scales, and a diagnostic set for one of the doctors’ consultation rooms.”
“The clients who needed an ECG had to travel several miles to the Savanna-la-mar [Public General] Hospital to get this done. These items will allow the staff to offer optimal health care to the citizens of Negril and are more cost-effective for the clients as well,” disclosed Public Health Nurse Linnette Powell.
She told the gathering that the staff is extremely grateful for the overwhelming support given by the Rotary Club, adding that staff members are also fully committed to the full utilisation and care of the equipment.
Ramon Bremmer, president of the Rotary Club of Negril, said, “It is our hope that doctors and nurses of the Negril Health Centre will be able to offer optimal services to mothers, children and to all the citizens of Negril and its surrounding environs.”
He encouraged the citizens of Negril and its environs to care for the clinic by treating it as their own.
He noted that under the renovation and upgrading project last year, new ceilings were installed, floor tiled, and new windows as well as lighting, fans, and air-conditioning units installed.
Meanwhile, Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) councillor caretaker for the Negril Division, Owen James, noted that the equipment will allow the staff to be better able to undertake their job while at the same time alleviate the financial burden of patients who will no longer have to travel long distances for the services as