Health Minister unbothered by pending audit of Cornwall Regional Hospital

 

With the government beginning to reopen sections of Cornwall Regional Hospital in St. James, Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. Christopher Tufton, says he is not concerned about the special hospital audit announced by Auditor General Pamela Monroe Ellis. 

 

This audit will investigate whether Jamaica is getting value for money in public health procurement, specifically focusing on the Cornwall Regional Hospital Rehabilitation Project and the University Hospital of the West Indies. 

 

"[The Auditor General] has the authority to go into any entity and to do her audits. And the truth is, a lot has been made of the Cornwall budget. Again, I say for starters, the $20-plus billion has been bandied about, but most of that money has not yet been spent. So she would really be auditing the amounts that have been spent, which is 1.8 and 3.9 [billion dollars], which is the figure that I have. And that's fine. I mean, we have tried to maintain the systems that are necessary through the procurement process," Dr. Tufton asserted while speaking Thursday on Radio Jamaica's Beyond the Headlines. 

 

The Auditor General reports that her review of the government's budgets indicated that over $500 billion was allocated for public health expenditure between the fiscal years 2019 to 2020 and 2023 to 2024.

 

She says, despite this significant investment, the public is still concerned about public health infrastructure and service delivery. The audit report is expected to be published between July and September this year.

 

Meanwhile, the Health Minister said the redevelopment of Cornwall Regional Hospital is indicative of the government's commitment to overhauling the health sector. 

 

The hospital has been undergoing significant upgrades and redevelopment work following the discovery of air quality issues and dereliction dating back to 2009. 

 

The extensive repair and overhaul of the hospital is slated to cost some $23.5 billion with completion set for the first quarter of next year. 

 

Dr. Tufton said over the next year, several developments within the facility are expected to reopen on a phased basis.

 

"As a government and a ministry responsible for the health and wellness of the population, including the people of western Jamaica, we have taken the necessary time, allocated the required financial resources and engaged the appropriate expertise to comprehensively and sustainably address the rehabilitation of one of the country's main hospitals," he said. 

 

Dr. Tufton said additional support systems at Cornwall Regional Hospital will be reopened over the next few months, starting with the information technology server rooms. 

 

"The dietary has to be opened up because meals have to be prepared in the location, both for Cornwall and for Western Child, the one single dietary department, and some of the administrative service delivery aspects of the building. That will happen over the next few months. Beyond that, we will continue to see floor by floor opening up into patient wards with the expected completion of a full resumption on the main building for first quarter of the new year. So it's not very long from now considering how long we have waited. The team is in full throttle. Work is taking place on a daily basis while services are being provided," noted the minister.