MEDICAL and auxiliary teams at St Ann’s Bay Regional and Cornwall Regional hospitals have been positioned to better serve patients after the injection of more than $3 million in resources from Sandals Foundation.

Working closely with hospital officials, the philanthropic organisation has continued its response and recovery effort to meet shelter, welfare, and patient needs in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa which struck Jamaica on October 28, 2025.

On Tuesday, medical and auxiliary staff at St Ann’s Bay Regional Hospital were proud to reopen its dietary department following the delivery and installation of a suite of kitchen appliances including a restaurant range stove, freezer, and refrigerator from Sandals Foundation.

The supplies, which are valued at approximately $2 million, now allow for the preparation of some 300 patient meals daily.

“During the hurricane we lost the roof of the building that housed our dietary department. Since then, we have changed locations and created a new space to serve our patients’ needs,” said Dennis Morgan, CEO at St Ann’s Bay Regional Hospital.

“The dietary department here at St Ann’s Bay Regional Hospital is critical, because while patients are here to receive medical care, proper nutrition is part of the healing process. A number of people come to our facility because of poor eating habits and are diabetic.

“We then have to counsel them to eat the right meal[s] and the right portion of that meal, so the dietary department at any health institution is critical to patient care. The Sandals Foundation’s donation of both the stove and refrigerators to us to continue that care in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa is so vital, and we are so appreciative of that assistance,” added Morgan.

Meanwhile, Cornwall Regional Hospital recently received 50 mattresses — valued at just over $1 million — to replace a portion of its bedding damaged by the Category 5 storm.

The donation followed a series of deliveries from Sandals Foundation, including packages of tarpaulins to act as temporary roofing at the records, maternity, and accident & emergency departments.

Approximately 500 cases of water have also been distributed to the medical team to meet the needs of staff and patients, and hygiene supplies — including sanitary wipes and diapers — have also been provided to support patient care.

Heidi Clarke, executive director at Sandals Foundations, said support to the island’s hospitals forms a strategic part of the foundation’s hurricane response strategy.

“A key part of our relief response is to support hospitals, clinics, and the well-being of our communities. We are committed to making our health-care facilities as functional as possible to protect the ill, injured, children, and the vulnerable,” said Clarke.

In November, Sandals Foundation injected $6 million worth of equipment and resources to help Bustamante Hospital for Children in St Andrew accept and care for the critically ill neonates, babies, and children who are being transferred from western Jamaica.

According to Clarke, moving forward, the philanthropic organisation will continue to provide, first, relief efforts and will focus on preparing classrooms for children to safely get back into school.

From left: Nadine Bell, dietitian at St Ann’s Bay Regional Hospital; Dennis Morgan, the hospital’s chief executive officer; and Rodroy Thomas, its executive chef, are joined by Lyndsay Isaacs, regional public relations manager at Sandals Ochi, during the handover of a restaurant range stove to the hospital by Sandals Foundation.