KINGSTON, Jamaica — Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Christopher Tufton says a field hospital is to be deployed to Black River within 24 hours as part of efforts to restore health services in St Elizabeth, which was severely impacted by Hurricane Melissa.

“We’re coordinating with the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) and other agencies of government, and that field hospital is expected to be delivered sometime tomorrow, and immediately we’ll begin to deploy and to set up that facility,” he said.

Dr Tufton, who was speaking during a media conference on Saturday, said the facility will include an operating theatre, diagnostic equipment and medical personnel to support the local team. He said it will be installed by the non-governmental organisation, Samaritan’s Purse.

“We’re hoping that during the course of this week, St Elizabeth, the parish and Black River, the capital, will have a functional hospital which is a field hospital, while we assess what is happening at the original hospital, and hopefully that will bring some level of comfort and support,” he said.

Health services at Black River Hospital have been interrupted due to Hurricane Melissa. The hospital’s administrative building has suffered significant damage, and electricity is currently unavailable in some areas.

The health minister said another field hospital is set to arrive from Spain. He said there are ongoing discussions with the Canadian and Indian Governments to establish additional field hospitals in Trelawny and Westmoreland.

“The field hospital is a fully equipped facility, so it comes with all the necessary gadgets of diagnostics and treatment bed space, and therefore it will add significant capacity for us both from the standpoint of the infrastructure damages that we have in those parishes, but also the personnel.

“We have to bear in mind that our people, our health workers, are also traumatised and they need some support in the field. We’re hoping that in the next few weeks, starting tomorrow, some capacity will be added through the field hospital deployment, and the team is working on the ground to do so,” he said.

He noted that assessments are underway to determine the extent of damage to existing hospitals, with restoration work to begin soon.

Meanwhile, he said more than 200 health workers will join a nationwide clean-up exercise on Sunday to assist hospitals in the hardest-hit parishes.

He further noted that the aim is to resume activities in primary health facilities across the island over the next week.

Dr Tufton also renewed appeals for blood donations to meet the growing demand from trauma and emergency cases.

—Vanassa McKenzie