Farmville Air Services needed now!

Farmville Hospital promised a helicopter to transport critical patients from Union Island and other outlying areas to their premises for emergency treatment. That was an essential lifesaving component in our effort to bring better and more efficient access to health care to all our people.
Celinia Clouden Smart Hospital in Union Island does not have essential radiology equipment for the local doctors to assess patients adequately to determine what further treatment is needed. This results in all questionable patients being rushed to Milton Cato Memorial Hospital. Patients’ chances of survival are greater the earlier they arrive in Kingstown for treatment.

The regular ferries would take about five hours to travel from Union Island to St. Vincent. The fast ferry takes about two hours. I am not sure how long the Coast Guard boat takes. Perhaps it is about three hours. The boat fare ranges from $160 to $170 return. Air fare is $470 return, and a plane takes about 20 minutes one way. Some persons pay special transport insurance for promised transport that the insurers are apparently not able to deliver. Some people believe that Philbert Bowens who was damaged by Hurricane Beryl would have been alive if he did not have to wait more than 30 hours to get to hospital in St. Vincent.

The boats apparently have no special accommodation facility for patients, so they are likely to be further traumatized during transport. The Coast Guard boat is so jerky that travel on it may be injurious not only to patients, but also to the accompanying nurse. Some wonder why the medical Coast Guard boat Baliceaux is never deployed for transporting patients.

Survival is not a political game. The people of North Leeward, North Windward and the Southern Grenadines deserve a living chance to access lifesaving services at Farmville Hospital (Milton Cato Memorial, Georgetown, Acute Referral). We call for the immediate deployment of the Farmville Air Ambulance, Farmville Helicopter and Farmville Fast Ferry.

Anthony G. Stewart PhD