The University of the West Indies Development & Endowment Fund (UWIDEF) and Flow have once again partnered to deliver much-needed state-of-the-art equipment to the University Hospital of the West Indies’ (UHWI) Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The ICU has been outfitted with a ventilator, bronchoscope and a portable sterilizing purifier & fluorescence immunity analyzer collectively valued at over $11 million.

Along with Flow and the UWIDEF, former UWIDEF Board Director, Dr Stephan Maxwell, also contributed to acquiring the much-needed ventilator valued at over $6 Million.

The lifesaving equipment was donated at a handover ceremony on July 13 at the UHWI. Speaking at the ceremony, Keith Mitchell, acting CEO of the UHWI, said: “We are truly grateful for these gifts. They are a well-needed resource and will provide significant assistance to our medical team as they strive to save lives.”

Carla Seaga, Executive Director, UWIDEF, spoke to the importance of the partnership with Flow and its impact on the hospital’s life-saving mission.

“I am grateful for the support of our donors. It is through their assistance that the UWIDEF is able to do what we do. I am so pleased that through Flow’s generosity, and other donors, we are able to make our annual donation of critical equipment to the hospital,” said Seaga.

Flow’s partnership with UWIDEF began in 1994 when, as Telecommunications of Jamaica, the company donated US$500,000 to the fund. The UWIDEF allocated fifty per cent to various projects and the purchase of equipment while the remaining fifty per cent was invested. Today, the annual returns on that investment provides substantial funding that is reinvested in the hospital.

Shelly-Ann O’Connor, Operations & Projects Coordinator, Flow Foundation, shared: “Flow and the Flow Foundation are committed to doing our part in making life better for Jamaicans. This is at the heart of what we do. We are happy that, through strategic partnerships like this, we are able to make a difference by helping to provide this technologically advanced medical equipment.”

The perpetual returns from the UWIDEF also supports the UHWI’s mission to deliver advanced health services to the region, providing a robust clinical training programme for medical students who will gain exposure to the newest and most cutting-edge equipment, and serving as the site for the testing and development of new diagnostic and therapeutic techniques.

This was underscored by Dr Kelvin Metalor, Head of the Intensive Care & Anesthesia Department at the UHWI who accepted the donation on behalf of the ICU, explained the function of each piece of equipment and did a demonstration.

“Time is life and the sooner we can procure these machines, the better positioned we are to help our patients. We are grateful for this equipment which will help us to save lives,” said Metalor.

Over its 30-year history, the UWIDEF has donated more than $1 billion to the UWI Mona campus in the areas of research, scholarships, infrastructure development, and hospital equipment.