St. Jude geared to expands its services soon

Thursday, January 7, 2010 – The St. Jude Hospital is expected to expand its operations to the east wing of the George Odlum National Stadium in the coming weeks, to provide increased and enhanced health services to residents of the south and surrounding areas.

The hospital's medical director, Dr. Chierry Poyotte, says the use of the stadium's east wing will result in St. Jude operating at full capacity with approximately five dozen beds and adequate operating room capability.

Dr Poyotte says, the expansion will also accommodate ophthalmology and dental care which are not available in the present set-up at the west wing of the national stadium.

“We have spent a lot of time upgrading the infrastructure of the building and we expect within the next week or two, we will expand operations to the east wing of the stadium; that will involve increasing our in-patient capability. What we are hoping to to do, is have approximately sixty-bed in-patient capacity. Additionally we expect to have two fully equipped operating rooms which should be completed within the next two to four weeks, ” Dr. Poyotte said.

The United States Government's Southern Command will also provide assistance in the coming weeks to upgrade the radiology capability at the temporary St. Jude Hospital location.

The medical institution has been housed at the George Odlum National Stadium for a little more than three months since the hospital was devastated by fire on September 9, last year.

“Currently in terms of operations we have an emergency room, an operating room, walk-in clinics, physiotherapy, laboratory and radiology. Additionally, we have complete speciality clinics. We have in-patient capability on the west wing of the stadium with approximately twenty-eight beds, and we are seeing all type of patients,” added Dr. Chierry Poyotte, Medical director of the hospital.

Dr Poyotte says, hospital officials continue to collaborate with the ministry of sports and the sporting fraternity to ensure that the infrastructural integrity of the stadium is not compromised and that national athletes have access tot he stadium for training. He says officials expect to sign a memorandum of understanding shortly to formalise the present agreement with the sporting fraternity.

“The athletes had concerns about their use of the track and I would like to indicate that all national athletes have access tot he track for training. I think what the ministry of sports wanted was to clarify that agreement so that access to the facility would be organised; we believe that our athletes should have access to the track,” said the medical director of the St. Jude Hospital, Dr Chierry Poyotte.

Dr. Poyotte says, hospital officials will continue to work closely with the ministry of sports and the sporting fraternity, as long as the hospital remains temporarily located at the George Odlum National Stadium.

Government is scheduled to break ground for the construction of the new St. Jude hospital, later this month.

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