THE Culture, Health, Arts, Sports and Education (CHASE) Fund has donated an echocardiogram (ECG) machine valued $9 million to the Heart Foundation of Jamaica (HFJ).

The new equipment will strengthen the HFJ’s capacity to screen for various heart conditions and, in the process, reduce the number of patients awaiting the foundation’s services.

Additionally, the machine will allow physicians to conduct heart evaluations without the need for tube or wire insertions in order to identify abnormalities.

Speaking during Thursday’s handover ceremony Executive Director Deborah Chen said gestures like CHASE’s donation help to maintain the foundation’s operations.

“Without places like the CHASE Fund we would not be able to continue the model that we have now. Our rates are subsidised because of these donations. We will ensure that we maintain the equipment,” Chen said, adding, “Thanks on behalf of the patients who would otherwise not be in a position to afford these tests.”

Meanwhile, CHASE’s Chief Executive Officer Wilford “Billy” Heaven pledged the entity’s continued support in further strengthening the HFJ.

“The Heart Foundation plays an important role in the health-care landscape, in terms of screening for hypertension, diabetes, and heart-related illnesses as well as public education in these areas. CHASE’s focus on primary health care in Jamaica is deliberate and in keeping with the national direction and policy and so our support of these activities is important,” he said.

The health sector benefits from 20 per cent of CHASE’s resources, which provide financial assistance towards the development of a wide range of projects and programmes that fall within the scope of the five defined areas reflected in the entity’s name.