SVG Rotary South/IHC partnership growing

The recent visit of a medical team from the International Hospital for Children (IHC) Virginia, USA, has taken the Rotary Club South/IHC partnership to a new level.{{more}}

Not only did the visiting team include medical personnel from Virginia, USA, but this time also included three Orthopedic Surgeons in Dr. Kester Dragon from Grenada, Dr. Julian De Aramas from Dominica and Dr. Horaitius Jeffers from St. Lucia, compliments the IHC.

The IHC team of seven included the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Susan Rickman and a staff member Lauren Faig of the IHC itself, Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Robert Tuten; Pediatric Anesthesiologist – Dr. Mike Estes; Operating theatre nurse Sherry Zanner; Surgical assistant – Ginger Fuzy and Pediatric Physical Therapist – Anne Chan.

The visiting team examined seventy children at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH), including three from Grenada and one from Anguilla. Of these, 17 were operated on, 46 received treatment and 11 will be referred to the IHC in Virginia.

The Rotary South/IHC partnership has advanced significantly over its five-year span; so much so that the IHC has seen it fit to employ retired Nursing Administrator Jackie King as their local representative. The CEO of IHC made confirmation of this during a press conference held during the IHC team’s visit. The CEO also acknowledged that similar IHC partnerships as with Rotary South exist in five other countries, all with much larger populations than SVG, but that SVG was the largest and best run of the lot.

According to a release from the Rotary Club South, the value of this programme is in excess of EC$10 million.

The release says: “The Ministry of Health, and in particular Dr, Data, Dr. Kagbala and the other medical personnel at the MCMH, have been pivotal in advancing this project since its inception in 2002.”