Port Maria Hospital operating theatre reopens after almost 30 years
KINGSTON, Jamaica — Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr Christopher Tufton announced today that the Port Maria Hospital’s operating theatre, which was closed for almost 30 years, was reopened and performed its first two surgeries this week.
The minister made the announcement via Twitter this morning.
The Port Maria Hospital was once thought to be the mecca for surgery in St Mary from the 1960s to the late 1970s.
But the operating theatre has been closed since the 1980s during a rationalisation of the health services at the hospital and has not been reopened since.
Refurbishing works to the interior and exterior of the theatre began in December 2012 and by 2013 98 per cent of work on the facility was completed.
The renovation was funded by the National Health Fund at a cost of $15 million.
However, in 2013, the hospital said it needed another $30 million to procure equipment and medical supplies.
