Public Relations Officer (PRO) for the United Workers Party (UWP), Leonard “Spider” Montoute, this week, called on the government to make use of a field hospital that was donated by the United States in 2022- considering the present state of affairs at St Jude Hospital.
Negotiations for the 40-bed hospital began in 2020 under the UWP Administration, Montoute said, however, the hospital was officially handed over to the government two years ago- after his party was voted out of office.
“Given the fact that there’s no end in sight as to when St Jude’s will be relocated,” the Field Hospital can be set up in “just about any location and I’m sure you can find ideal locations in Vieux Fort,” Montoute said, referring to the fire which partially destroyed the hospital in 2009. The hospital was subsequently relocated to the George Odlum Stadium.
Montoute said the Field Hospital has all of the amenities that are required including air conditioning, heating, and its own generator and therefore “you can set up a first-class hospital where the conditions will be far better than what obtains at the George Odlum Stadium.”
Montoute said that by abandoning the Field Hospital altogether, the Minister for Health, Moses Jn Baptiste and the government by extension are showing a lack of concern.
Prime Minister Philip J Pierre, however, told reporters this week he has “full confidence in the health minister and the doctors and nurses of Saint Lucia.”
“Healthcare is not an easy issue. Saint Lucia’s healthcare issues started a long time ago,” the prime minister noted, adding that it “got more serious after Covid-19 so it’s very unfair to blame the health minister (for) what’s happening in Saint Lucia today.”
The donation of the field hospital (and three utility vehicles which were also donated) was valued at more than US$650,000 and was supposed to help with the COVID-19 response and expand the Ministry of Health’s capacity to address future challenges from natural disasters.
The donation was made possible through the U.S. military’s U.S. Southern Command Humanitarian Assistance Programme.
Prime Minister Philip J Pierre in 2022 noted that “we are witnessing yet another gesture from the government and people of the United States towards Saint Lucia’s efforts at combatting the COVID-19 pandemic. The field hospital will significantly augment Saint Lucia’s physical health infrastructure, enhance our disaster response readiness, and enable the provision of medical assistance in remote areas. But more importantly, at this critical time, it will equip the country with a standby capacity to manage any severe variant spike or other emergency.”