The country’s COVID-19 bed capacity has increased, with the installation of a 40-bed field hospital on the grounds of the May Pen Hospital in Clarendon. This as the country prepares for a continued surge in coronavirus cases.
The 40-bed field hospital in May Pen comes at a time when hospitals in the Southern Regional Health Authority, (SRHA) and across the other health regions are overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients.
The facility is generator equipped, outfitted with handwashing stations, a waiting area, specialized oxygen machines among other amenities. The field hospital comes at a cost of $850-thousand us dollars. The installation was made possible through support from the United States Southern Command and local bauxite company Jamalco. The Minister also added that up 300 or more beds will be added to aid in the COVID-19 response.
Chargé d’affaires of the US Embassy, John Mcintyre spoke extensively on the investments already made in Jamaica and the financial support to come. He adds that the delay in shipment of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine should not be seen as a setback.
Additionally, he notes plans to continue supporting the Health Ministry in testing and identifying COVID-19 variants, with the procurement of a genome sequencing platform for the country.
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