QUANTAS Solutions, a leasing company set up by the Dr Adrian Stokes-led Quantas Capital, is positioning itself to go after a piece of the US$102-million pie in Jamaica’s health care financing landscape with the launch of its medical equipment leasing programme. The sector is estimated to record growth of between seven per cent to 10 per cent over the next few years.

Quantas, in launching the new product on Monday at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel in St Andrew, said its aim is to bridge the financial gap that has long hindered health-care providers from accessing modern medical technology across the region where the medical equipment market is estimated at US$560 million.

“Whether someone visits friends, colleagues, or family members at the hospital, be it public or private, you see the need,” said Stokes in an interview with the Jamaica Observer after the launch event.

Quantas Solutions will focus on providing leasing options for MRI machines, positron emission tomography (PET) scans, and equipment for prostate cancer surgeries, among other critical devices, aiming to bridge the gap between outdated tools and advanced technology. These medical devices, such as MRI machines, often come with substantial price tags ranging from US$1.5 million to US$2 million or more, making them difficult for many institutions to acquire.

“One of the issues that health-care providers face, especially in the public sector, is that they will have the equipment, but these equipment break down frequently,” explained Stokes.

Through that service it said institutional and accredited investors in the region will be offered diverse and impactful investment options that support economic and social impacts, specifically in health-care. Quantas Solutions will also maintain the equipment it leases, through a bioengineering team that will be trained directly by the manufacturers. It said the aim is to ensure that machine downtimes are minimised.

“We have orders from private sector entities, and they are MRI machines, largely, and other specialised equipment to perform surgeries in prostate cancer,” Stokes disclosed to the Business Observer.

He highlighted that Jamaica faces a significant shortfall in capital investments in essential sectors, noting that while the country attracts substantial funding in traditional industries such as energy, tourism, and mining, critical sectors remain underfunded. Foreign direct investment (FDI) primarily flows into these established areas, leaving key sectors, vital for overall well-being and economic growth, underserved. This lack of investment contributes to low economic growth, with one of the most impacted areas being labour productivity, particularly pronounced in the health-care sector.

“It will invest in key areas — areas that are critical to well-being, areas that are critical to driving productivity, areas that are vital to the survival of our region. And that’s what we want to do. We want to use financial innovation to channel capital in innovative ways.”

Stokes outlined that Quantas Solutions’ business model is designed to address the needs of health-care providers who require essential equipment but lack the funds to purchase it. Under this model, health-care facilities can approach Quantas with their equipment needs, and the company will work closely with manufacturers to procure and own the necessary devices. Quantas then leases the equipment to the health-care provider, with a maintenance programme included for long-term support. He identified it as a “turnkey” solution that is available to both the public and private healthcare sectors.

“If you have a strong board of directors, if you have leaders who have a track record of executing and executing well, if you have business models that are robust, that are customer-centric… then you are a potential customer for us to do business with,” Stokes noted.

When questioned about risk mitigation of payment defaults on its leasing agreements, Stokes assured that Quantas has developed a robust risk management framework, wherein the company plans to engage only with reputable organisations.

“We have strong people who can assess various or potential businesses to determine creditworthiness. So we’re pretty comfortable that we will be able to navigate the landscape successfully,” said Stokes.