‘Polyclinics need to be more efficient’

Opposition Member of Parliament for St. George South, Dwight Sutherland, is insistent that the island’s polyclinics must become more efficient and “patient-care centred”.

“We need to stop fire-fighting in the primary health-care facilities and find creative ways to manage our systems better. The polyclinic must be so structured that they take the load off the premier health-care institution that is the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) and we must move to a stage urgently where we need to provide the resources to open at least two polyclinics over a 24-hour period. That is where we need to go!” he stressed.

Claiming that the QEH was already overburdened, especially its Accident and Emergency Department, he said that these polyclinics should be able to deal with minor surgeries, basic x-rays and possess an asthma bay.

“This is where we need to go with our health-care system. Our polyclinics need to be more efficient and they need to ease the pressure off the accident and emergency system. They can continue to carry the brunt of the non-communicable diseases, but the capacity must be expanded by leveraging even things like tele-medicine. This is all grounded in the principle that access to health is a fundamental right of all citizens of this country and we cannot continue to function in this mode,” Sutherland added.

He made the comments moments after Health Minister John Boyce, in the Lower House, sought approval of a supplementary of $1.8 million to make the final payment for the construction of the David Thompson Health and Social Services Complex in St. John and used the opportunity to question the exact total cost of this facility, noting the various supplementaries requested over the years for the completion of the project. (JMB)