St Catherine hospital receives $2.6m in medical equipment

Among the donated items are an ECG machine, two patient monitors, four infusion pumps, and accessories, which were officially handed over to the hospital on Tuesday, April 8, 2025.

Senior Medical Officer at LH, Dr. Trevor Bygrave, emphasized the importance of the donation. He noted that hospital, which serves over 20,000 patients annually across five parishes — St. Andrew, Clarendon, St. Mary, St. Catherine, and St. Ann — will significantly benefit from this much-needed medical equipment.

In addition, Dr. Bygrave highlighted that the equipment will support the launch of a paediatric service, as 18-20% of the patients seen on a monthly basis are children (11 years and under). This donation will play a crucial role in supporting the opening of this service that will further enhance the hospital’s capacity to care for children. 

The donation was funded through proceeds from the faculty’s annual benefit play, Smoker 2024, called Love at First Wine, a Caribbean adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.  The production was entirely written, directed, and produced by the students of the Medical and Dental Class of 2027. The play not only supports the Jamaican health sector but also fosters the importance of volunteerism among future medical professionals. 

Started in 1950 by the late Professor Barrie Hanchard and some of his classmates, Smoker was an outlet for medical and dentistry students to de-stress after their final examinations. However, over the years it evolved into something much more meaningful, a powerful tradition where third-year medical and dental students pour their hearts into creating a theatrical production to support a Type-C hospital. 

The Linstead Hospital, which falls under the management of the South East Regional Health Authority (SERHA), provides a range of services, including accident and emergency care, general medicine, laboratory and x-ray, mental health services, physiotherapy, and NHF pharmacy.