Couva, Mt Hope Paediatric to be 'centres of excellence'

THE North Central Regional Health Authority (NCRHA) will manage operations indefinitely at the Couva Medical and Multi-Training Facility and will provide pharmaceuticals for CPAD patients, as well as diagnostic imaging services such as CT and MRI scans by referrals from the five regional health authorities, starting in July.

This was announced on Tuesday by health minister Terrence Deyalsingh, who, along with heads of the NCRHA and the University of the West Indies (UWI), gave an update on the $1.6 billion facility's short-term plans and long-term ambitions, at a media conference at the Ministry of Health, Park Street, Port of Spain.

Deyalsingh also announced the diversion of equipment and facilities specific to children's healthcare to the Wendy Fitzwilliam Paediatric Hospital at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mt Hope, which he said will become "another centre of excellence" by December.

"Couva is not a status-quo hospital," Deyalsingh said. "That is why we are not bringing it into the network, where the new Point Fortin hospital will come in, the new Arima hospital will come in.

"What we are going to do with Couva is that we're going to turn (it) once and for all into a centre of excellence that drives change...that redounds to the benefit of all who depend on the public sector and the private sector for help."

Initially constructed for use as a children's hospital by the People's Partnership administration, the Couva hospital will be repurposed as a specialised facility for cardiac treatment, renal care, ophthalmology and orthopaedic services, which Deyalsingh hopes will be completed in a two-and-a-half to three-year timeframe.

It is being opened in phases. The first provides for walk-in CDAP prescription services and diagnostic imaging services by referral from one of the five regional health authorities. The other components involve developing a plan to include teaching, procuring equipment, and training.

The imaging services cover CT and MRI scans, radiology, mammograms, fluoroscopic investigations and ultrasound.

"It is a specialised facility, where clinical guidelines are to be developed to international standards for these four areas, and then that will filter down into our satellite hospitals," Deyalsingh said.

Addressing the contentious matter of the children's hospital, he said resources would be better utilised in focusing on one fully functional specialised facility.

"What I have suggested to the (NCRHA) board, via chairman (Nigel) Romano (...) bearing in mind that you have a global shortage of specialist and sub-specialists, it makes no sense to have the Wendy Fitzwilliam (Hospital) and the Couva facility focusing on the same area of care, especially when Wendy Fitzwilliam was never 100 per cent utilised," Deyalsingh said, adding,"The children of TT are not forgotten in this equation.

"As a matter of fact, the children, once we revision Wendy Fitzwilliam, will now (offer) a far superior level of care than we have gotten in the past."

Chairman of the Couva Medical Multi-Training Facility Nigel Romano said the board has had discussions with internationally recognised potential operators.

"We realised in that exercise that we needed to widen the net and make sure that we had discussions with as wide a market as possible to ensure that we get the best deal for the people of TT, and that will take time," said Romano.

The NCRHA will run the facility indefinitely unless and until a deal is reached with a suitable operator, Romano said, which must have a proven track record and the ability to help the country raise the standard of healthcare. The board will finalise a business case, one which could attract an international operator, and one "willing to take a risk on TT to deliver quality healthcare, while earning a reasonable return on their investment."

UWI, which owns a 51 per cent stake in the Couva Medical and Multi-Training Facility, will use the teaching facility for optometry, nursing and pharmacy, which are currently offered at Mt Hope, as well as other select doctor in medicine programmes.