That's interesting, because the old wooden hospital in San Ignacio for a hundred years had all that too. But they have closed it for a new poly clinic, which I have not seen yet in San Ignacio. How that has played out in Dangriga and Punta Gorda that have beds, but the bigger TWIN TOWNS hospital, or new POLY CLINIC has no beds at all now, when it used to have in the older building.
I don't know what they are doing, but certainly we are getting reports of severe injuries that are being shipped from P.G. and Dangriga to Belmopan in the center of the country for trauma treatment. Belmopan then looks at them and ships them onward to the port another couple of hours away.
Even amateurs like me, realize TIME is important in treating trauma and too many deaths are occuring according to health staff in Belmopan, for lack of WILL in the administrative realm, to allow surgery there? Shipping them to KMH in the far away port is a loser for sure. Since the baby death shipment, that went in the public media from Punta Gorda to Belmopan and then onward to KMH in the port, and since there have been mention of other cases similar to that. One has to wonder why they can't deal with it in either Punta Gorda, or Dangriga then? Why go all the way to KMH down in the port. That is a death ride for serious injuries.
Trevor is praising my analysis, so something must be wrong with it? ( Grin! ) Still if they have all these beds in Dangriga and Punta Gorda, then why does the TWIN TOWNS serving about 140,000 people have no beds and have to ship people out, usually via a stop at Belmopan, then onward in the death ride to the coastal port. Why is surgery not being permitted anymore? Why are bed patients not being allowed in the TWIN TOWNS. Or in Belmopan?
I understand the emphasis on preventative medicine, but why can't surgery be an option? I spoke to one surgeon in Belmopan that told me he was not allowed to treat the youth with the knife wound and they would not permit the surgery to be opened to do so. Even knowing the youth would die before finished the van ride to the port town and KMH.
--- On Fri, 10/30/09, Lan Sluder
From: Lan Sluder
Subject: Re: Bz-Culture: Thinking about Belmopan Hospital
To: "Ray Auxillou"
Date: Friday, October 30, 2009, 12:54 PM
No, it's a 52-bed hospital, about the same size as the Belmopan Hospital (50 beds) and has a large array of medical services.
Below is what the Ministry of Health says about the Southern Regional Hospital, which opened five or six years ago in a new building just west of Dangriga.
--Lan Sluder
>>
The Southern Health Region has two (2) Public Hospitals, fourteen (14) Health Centers and twelve (12) Health Posts and the Region serves a population of 61,000 persons (CSO 2007 estimate).
The two public hospitals are Southern Regional Hospital (formerly Dangriga Hospital), which has 52 beds and Punta Gorda Hospital/ Community Hospital, which has 30 beds.
The Southern Regional Hospital provides both Primary and Secondary Care Services. In addition, the four basic Specialties are offered, namely, Gynecology, Surgical, Paediatric and Internal Medicine. In an effort to enhance coverage in the area of Mental Health, a new Acute Psychiatric Unit was opened and a Voluntary and Counseling Testing Center (VCT) was established.
The Southern Regional Hospital has 2 main Wards: General Ward and the Maternity Ward.
The General Ward Services include: Care for children and adult patients, Care for Pre/ Post General Surgical Patients, and Care for Critical Patients (Intensive Care Unit).
The Maternity Services include: Care for pregnant mother, Care of the Newborn, Postpartum Care, Care for Gynecological Patients – pre and post operation care for C-section and gyne surgeries.
The Punta Gorda Hospital provides services in General Medicine, Maternity and delivery. Specialist clinics are carried out by visiting specialists from the Southern Regional Hospital. Primary Care services are also provided.
Support Services:
Support Services, which include Laboratory, Radiology and Pharmacy, are also offered at the Hospitals.
The Laboratory provides diagnostic services for the hospital. The six areas of diagnostic tests include: Hematology, Chemistry, Urinalysis, Parasitology, Serology, and Immuno-Hematology.
The Radiology provides diagnostic radio graphs to the referring physician of the respective patients. The following X-rays are done: All Skeletal, Chest (lateral, oblique), Abdomen (Erect, Supine, Lateral), Contrasted X-Ray – Barium Swallow, Barium Meal, Enema, urethrogram and Intravenous Plylogram (IVP).
The Pharmacy Department offers daily dispensing of medication to Out-patients and supply the Hospital and Health Center with both pharmaceuticals and medical supplies. Compounding is also done. Pharmacy is responsible for stock management and for the requisitioning of all pharmaceuticals and supplies on the basis of need and utilization, from the Central Medical Stores.
On Fri, Oct 30, 2009 at 12:44 PM, Ray Auxillou
mY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT IS JUST A POLY CLINIC NOW?
--- On Fri, 10/30/09, Lan Sluder
From: Lan Sluder
Subject: Re: Bz-Culture: Thinking about Belmopan Hospital
To:
Cc: bz-culture@psg.com
Date: Friday, October 30, 2009, 12:42 PM
Ray,
Are you taking into account the Southern Regional Hospital in Dangriga?
--Lan Sluder
On Fri, Oct 30, 2009 at 12:37 PM, Ray Auxillou
BELMOPAN HOSPITAL COGITATING ( further to article on Western Belize Happenings )
KMH in the port mainly serves the population of the coastal port and 4 towns in the North of the country.
What is needed is to turn Belmopan Hospital into a real hospital, not a clinic and give full services including a trauma center. After all, the Belmopan Hospital is first provider for the towns in the Southern Districts and out Western Belize. This area has half the population of Belize and probably I guess the next census will show we have more than half the population of Belize.
Having Belmopan Hospital, equal to in facilities as the port town KMH is a logical thing. Presuming in the next 15 years we get a paved road driven through to Orange Walk, from Belmopan, then the Belmopan Hospital would become the major hospital in the country.
Something to think about? Especially since right now, there is no trauma center serving half the population of the country in the West, Center and Southern areas.
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