KINGSTON, Jamaica. Thursday, June 20, 2024: The public healthcare system continues to benefit from the European Union-supported Programme for the Reduction of Maternal and Child Mortality (PROMAC) project. In the last financial year, 1,345 patients utilized the facilities and services borne out of the project. This figure does not include other patients, who would have needed critical care.
In highlighting the legacy benefits, Minister of Health & Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, MP said, “PROMAC was a time-bound intervention that delivered on what it set out to do, which was to move the needle on improving the quality of and access to newborn and emergency obstetric care. I want to say thank you to the people of Europe for the support; the people of Jamaica are grateful for this timely and well needed support, and we are committed as a nation to ensure that the assistance that you have provided will continue to impact the lives of Jamaicans as we intended.”
In the Northeast Region 92 pieces of equipment were provided to the St. Ann’s Bay Hospital with 16 at-risk mothers being served and 259 babies receiving support through the facility in the 2023/24 financial year. In the Southern Region, Mandeville Hospital received 29 pieces of equipment from PROMAC and in the last financial year received 633 patients in the state-of-the-art facility built. At the Spanish Town Hospital in the Southeast Region, 10 mothers and 314 neonates benefited from the St. Catherine facility, which received 26 pieces of equipment.
Among the major wins from the PROMAC intervention were:
- the establishment of maternal and neonatal high dependency units at the Bustamante Hospital for Children, Victoria Jubilee Hospital, Spanish Town Hospital and St. Ann’s Bay Hospital to the tune of J$822 million;
- the provision of 6 new ambulances to the Mandeville Comprehensive Clinic, Annotto Bay, St. Jago Park and Savanna-la-Mar health centres, as well as Alexandria and Chapleton Community hospitals at a cost of some J$95 million;
- More than 1,800 health professionals trained in neonatal and maternal skills; and
- 3 campaigns launched to promote the improvement of health-seeking behaviours and patients’ rights; in addition to the provision of 29 ventilators to treat intensive care patients and fight COVID-19.
COVID-19 Response
In the Ministry’s response to COVID-19 all of these facilities were repurposed to provide support to the health system to effectively respond. This was done with the support of the European Union who consented to the facilities being reorganized based on the needs of the hospitals, which resulted in more than two years of the suspension of the intended purpose of the facility.
“The Ministry continues prioritize maternal and child health both of which are pivotal to Jamaica’s sustainable development, in a progressing effort to reduce maternal and child morbidity and mortality. An important contributor to that progress has been the European Union-supported Programme for the Reduction of Maternal and Child Mortality, PROMAC,” Dr. Tufton said.