SAVANNA-LA-MAR Westmoreland — The $331-million expansion and upgrading work at the 62-year-old Savanna-la-Mar Public General Hospital is expected to not only address the chronic shortage of bed space at the facility, but also open up the possibility of offering services such as surgical procedures to foreigners.

The upgrade could include the construction of an Accident and Emergency (A&E) Department and outpatient area — announced two months before the September 2025 General Election — which should free up ward space, allowing for an additional 120-bed capacity.

“We have staff, and being on the tourist belt, we can facilitate foreign nationals even at that space…down there. We can transform it that way. It’s a wonderful idea and it is structured in such a way that we can go above that to another storey. If needs be, there can even be a private ward up there. You never tell,” Roan Grant, CEO of the hospital told the Jamaica Observer recently.

The Type B facility, which has capacity of 218 beds, held up to 261 patients a week ago, highlighting the pressure on the hospital. The expansion is expected to ease overcrowding, particularly in the A&E Department.

​“Currently, we’re having spacing issues as it relates to beds because our A&E is overcrowded with persons who are admitted and needing to be transferred to the ward space, but because of the [Hurricane Melissa]-damaged area we could not do that, so we are facilitating that in the A&E Department just now,” added Grant.

Chief executive officer of the Savanna-la-Mar Public General Hospital Roan Grant (right) walking through the new outpatient area of the hospital with workmen in the background. (Photo: Anthony Lewis)

​The upgrade of the Savanna-la-Mar Public General Hospital started in late January and was initially expected to be completed within two to three months. However, delays occurred due to importation issues with equipment, such as air conditioning units.

Despite these challenges, Grant said the project — divided into the outpatient clinic, the general ward area, and the operating theatres — has made significant headway.

The general ward area, which originally served as a COVID-19 isolation ward, is now 95 per cent complete. The hospital has two major operating theatres which are also being upgraded and refurbished. Work started a month ago, and Grant is hopefully it will be completed in August. Consequently, the hospital is currently handling emergency surgeries only.

In the meantime, the outpatient clinic is being rebuilt from the concrete base of a dome-shaped tent-like structure that was destroyed by the Category 5 storm.

​“It will house our social workers [and] that will free up some space for us in the ward area where they are currently existing. Those rooms that they are currently [using] will be transformed for rest areas and consultation areas for doctors.

​“Our social workers will be in this new outpatient outfit, as well as we will have 14 examination rooms. We have a plaster/dressing room as well as procedure rooms for catheter change as well as dressing as well. And we have our newly built nursing stations,” added Grant.

Workmen adding the final touches to the outpatient area of the Savanna-la-Mar General Public Hospital. (Photo: Anthony Lewis)

He said ​a new air conditioning system will also be installed as part of the upgrade.

Reflecting on the state of the hospital before the project began, Grant described the environment as a complete mess and confusion.

“Before the project began, it was a disaster, it was chaos. We were wondering how we were gonna recuperate, how we were gonna manage, how we were gonna build back. And we were in disarray but we weren’t discouraged. I believe that coming together, we found the strength to believe that things will get better, and this project came in and I believe gradually we saw the light coming at the end of the tunnel,” shared Grant.

He told the Observer that when the upgrade is completed he wants visitors to experience a “wow” factor.

“That is what I would want everybody who comes to this facility and enjoys these new structures [to say]. I would want them to have this wow factor moment. That is my biggest expectation from this project,” declared Grant who thanked the National Health Fund and the Westmoreland Municipal Corporation for their roles in executing the project.