KINGSTON, Jamaica — The South East Regional Health Authority (SERHA) has announced that the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH) has received international certification as a centre of excellence for spinal surgery by the Scoliosis Research Society (SRS) in the United States.

Only 11 other sites around the world have received this prestigious endorsement, according to a release from the Ministry of Health.

 The SRS is an international society aimed at fostering optimal care for all patients with spinal deformities.

The certification was made possible through the efforts of the Duncan Tree Foundation (DTF) and was presented to the hospital during the official launch of the Foundation’s Jamaica Chapter on November 6, the ministry said.

DTF is a US-based, non-profit organisation which has conducted nine medical missions at the KPH since 2012.&

Through its volunteers, the foundation has partnered with local medical teams to conduct 94 scoliosis surgeries on adolescent patients at the Kingston Public and Cornwall Regional Hospitals.

The ministry said the instruments required for each surgery, valued at US$200,000 each, are also donated by the foundation.

“SERHA is proud of this remarkable accomplishment which means that orthopaedic surgeons from the United States, Europe, Asia, and Africa will now be able to support DTF’s Scoliosis Care Fund Project at KPH through knowledge transfer, capacity building, and lending support to the orthopaedic medical team at KPH,” Philip Armstrong, SERHA Board Chairman said.

“I would like to express sincere appreciation to the Duncan Tree Foundation for the role it continues to play in the advancement of spinal surgery at KPH and the number of patients it has helped through the scoliosis surgeries that have been provided,” he added.

The foundation’s latest medical mission to the island took place October 27 — November 6 at the Kingston Public and Cornwall Regional Hospitals where 13 adolescent patients received scoliosis surgery.