KINGSTON, Jamaica — Residents in central Jamaica will now have access to enhanced ear, nose and throat (ENT) services at the Mandeville Regional Hospital (MRH) in Manchester following the donation of a surgical microscope to the ENT Department valued at $3.1 million.

The donation was made possible by the Manchester Wellness Foundation and will now allow patients who would have usually been transferred to Kingston to remove objects from the oesophagus to instead do their surgeries in Manchester.

The handover of the equipment was made on Wednesday, the Southern Regional Health Authority said in a release this afternoon.

 Acting CEO of the MRH, Marcia Francis, explained that for the period, January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018, the ENT Department was able to offer services to 5,109 patients in the out-patient clinics and performed 317 surgical procedures.

“The hospital could have facilitated more surgical procedures, however, the absence of the surgical microscope made it impossible. With this robust, compact and flexible microscope, the hospital’s ENT team will be able to perform additional procedures with compassion, in an accountable, respectful and efficient manner,” Francis said.

Meanwhile, Consultant at the MRH ENT Department, Dr Andrew Manning noted that the surgical microscope will make a major difference in the service offerings to residents from the parishes of Manchester, Clarendon, St Elizabeth and even other parishes.