Winston Chatrie left the health fair staged by his Member of Parliament Dr Andrew Wheatley a happy man.

“I live around the road across from here and I tell you, mi happy with the service today and the fact that I get to check my blood pressure and I know that everything alright; I’m really happy,” he told the Jamaica Observer.

The elderly man was among the many residents who benefited from the health fair held at Wheatley’s St Catherine South Central constituency office on Saturday, December 2, 2023.

Wheatley, too, was pleased, telling the Observer that the event is essential to raising health awareness among residents, noting the importance of prioritising health.

“Over the last couple of years we have started to emphasise health awareness in the constituency and we see this as an ideal opportunity to ensure that a lot of the services that are already available, people can get access to them. Rather than going to the Spanish Town Hospital or even the health centre, we try to bring some of the services to the people and we have been getting a very positive response,” he said.

“It is like they are getting free health care delivered to their doorstep. A lot of persons might not have the money to go and get tested and also they do not have to travel far, they just come across the road and we just pick them up, so they are benefiting,” he said.

“You could go to the hospital where you might have to join long lines, but this is an opportunity for people to get free health care, especially the elderly, without going through the hassle at hospital and clinics,” Wheatley added.

The entities offering services included the Heart Foundation of Jamaica, Diabetes Association of Jamaica, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Jamaica Cancer Society, and Classic Body Fitness Centre Limited.

Wheatley expressed pleasure at the turnout of residents and stressed the importance of Jamaicans putting their health first as he repeatedly voiced his mantra, ‘Health is wealth’.

The MP also said that focus will be placed on improving the Sydenham Health Centre, the main such facility in the constituency.

“We got a grant to upgrade the Sydenham Health Centre – around $2 million. We are in dialogue with the team around there to see how best we can assist them, whether it is to make the place more comfortable for the doctors and nurses around there and the patients. We are looking to improve on infrastructure like A/C and stoves that they use there,” he said.