MOUNT SALEM, St James — Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Christopher Tufton has once again floated the idea of a private wing at Cornwall Regional Hospital (CRH). This time he has pitched it as an answer to concerns raised by the United States in a travel advisory which some tourism players have said continues to wreak havoc on bookings.

“This could also be addressed if we expanded the capacity for private arrangements, where overseas insurance can be accepted and where arrangements can be made between hotels and these tourists coming in, once they book, to give them greater assurance,” the minister said.

He was addressing a special presentation of design works for CRH, located in Mount Salem, Montego Bay, on Thursday.

In November last year, the US told its citizens to reconsider travel to Jamaica because of high crime levels and inadequate medical services.

The travel advisory noted that emergency services and hospital care vary throughout the island, and response times and quality of care may not be on par with US standards.

The advisory also said public hospitals are under-resourced and cannot always provide high-level or specialised care while private medical facilities require payment upfront before admitting patients and may not have the ability to provide specialised care.

According to Tufton, a side effect of Jamaica’s success as a sought-after tourism destination is that the country is now expected to provide a certain level of health care.

“We have been limping and under-resourced for many years until this Government has tried to prioritise that. And, frankly speaking, it’s impractical,” the health and wellness minister said of this expectation.

“Part of the way forward is to leverage what we have; not necessarily to use what we are creating primarily for Jamaicans but to leverage those strengths and create a private facility. I think the time is right for that. I want to encourage the private sector to explore that and let us have a conversation,” added Tufton, who noted that land is available.

President of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) Robin Russell, who was at Thursday’s presentation, pointed out that improvements being made to CRH will bode well for tourism.

“Tourists will have incidents, whether it’s heart issues, haematology, whatever it is, those issues are real. If we have facilities like this where people feel safe to come, it will enhance our product. I’m also sure that with [CRH] having a proper emergency facility, other things will spin off — like medical tourism,” he said.

“Persons will feel more comfortable now coming here and doing procedures; because those procedures won’t be as expensive even if they’re doing them in a private facility. They know that they have a facility like this, that if an emergency happens, they’ll feel a lot safer. What this is creating is a very safe environment for tourists and we welcome it wholeheartedly,” the JHTA president added.

The health and wellness minister agreed that a private wing could facilitate health tourism which could include cosmetic surgery.

The Western Children and Adolescent Hospital, which is currently under construction on the CRH compound, is expected to be occupied by May 2025. The area is being billed as a health campus.