Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, says the Government is committed to advancing healthcare as a human right in Jamaica.
This, he said, includes ensuring access to timely, acceptable and affordable care of appropriate quality as well as providing the underlying determinants of health, including health-related information and education.
Dr. Tufton was speaking at the launch of the ‘Partnership for the Promotion of Patients’ Rights in Maternal, Neonatal and Infant Health’ at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston on Wednesday (February 19).
The European Union (EU)-funded initiative seeks to achieve widespread recognition and respect for patients’ rights in maternal and child healthcare in Jamaica. It is specifically designed to improve health and reduce the deaths of mothers and children.
Dr. Tufton noted that the focus on mothers and children is important given that Jamaica is committed to reducing the maternal mortality rate to 70 per 100,000 live births by the year 2030, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
He pointed out that, globally, approximately 189 million women become pregnant annually, 122 million have a live birth, three million suffer still birth, 10 per cent suffer maternal complications during pregnancy and delivery, and 40 per cent have morbidities and disabilities post-delivery.
He noted that every one to two minutes, a woman somewhere dies in pregnancy or childbirth. Head of the EU Delegation to Jamaica, Ambassador Malgorzata Wasilewska, said the organisation remains committed to helping the Jamaican government to achieve better health outcomes.
The initiative is advocating for the recognition of patients’ rights as an important part of the healthcare of mothers and children; increasing the involvement of civil society organisations in bringing attention to the importance of patients’ rights in maternal, neonatal and infant health at all levels of society; and teaching the wider public to know and claim their health rights.
Under the project, persons are informed of their right to access, safety, respect, information, participation, privacy and confidentiality, and the right to complain and seek redress.
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