FOLLOWING the signing of memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with private health facilities in western Jamaica under Project CODE CARE, five prostate surgeries were completed successfully and the patients are now recovering at the Cornwall Regional Hospital in St James.

Approximately 200 surgeries, including hernias and hysterectomies, are to be completed in the first instance in keeping with the public-private partnership component of Project CODE CARE, as announced by the Minister of Health & Wellness Dr Christopher Tufton during his sectoral presentation in Parliament early this year.

Visiting the facility where the first set of surgeries were being completed, Dr Tufton noted, “I am pleased to see that we have begun to act on our recently signed MOU with our private partners. I am relieved that many Jamaicans will benefit from this programme, including persons who have been waiting as long as six years for surgery. These patients can now recover and return to some semblance of a normal life.

“Since March 2020 many hospitals have had to suspend the normal processing of elective surgeries, which has resulted in the extension of the length of time that persons wait for these operations, sometimes up to two years. One can only imagine the pain and suffering that those Jamaicans have to bear, waiting for a procedure but due to the COVID-19 priorities cannot get this procedure done,” Dr Tufton also expressed.

Project CODE CARE has a mission geared at reducing the surgical backlog by 2,000 over a 12-month period and reducing wait times for elective surgeries to less than 180 days. This mission will be achieved through public-private partnerships; procurement of surgical equipment; nursing missions; project management; and the rehabilitation of operating theatres at some public hospitals.