TCI: Five new medics coming for Mobile Clinic support reports TCI Chief Nursing Officer

#Providenciales, April 28, 2019 – Turks and Caicos – Two new medical officers and three registered nurses are expected to enhance the reach of the Mobile Clinic of the Primary Health Care service unit of the Ministry of Health and Human Services.

“We are expected, once we successfully recruit the two additional medical officers and the three registered nurses, we expect to have that service (mobile clinic) in full swing in Providenciales.”

Reporting on Tuesday to the Appropriations Committee ahead of the 2019-2020 Budget Debate, Chief Nursing Officer and Primary Health Care Manager for TCIG, Jacklyn Sutton explained that the number of visits to the Accident & Emergency section of the Cheshire Hall Medical Centre has experienced a dramatic decline.

“Previously, we were only offering maternal and child health services which were our antenatal and immunization clinics at the Cheshire Hall Clinic.  We began a pilot clinic to expand in terms of curative services; hypertension, diabetes, family planning that kind of thing and to date we have successfully be able to serve the public in Providenciales thus reducing the number of persons who access care for simple cough, cold and fever or just to have their blood pressure checked or to manage diabetes in the A&E section of the hospital. Those individuals are triaged by the hospital if they should go there and they are referred to our primary health care service.”

In giving an overview of Primary Health Care performance; the Manager of the unit said there have been clinic refurbishments in Salt Cay this year and in 2015 for Middle Caicos.  Two new clinics have been built for North Caicos residents in Kew and Bottle Creek; where the work is nearing completion and a hand-over is imminent in Bottle Creek. 

“We have done some work at the Blue Hills Clinic but of course that needs some further attention. In Providenciales, we have expanded our primary health care services in the Cheshire Hall Clinic.”

In reply to concern of the condition of the clinic in South Caicos, the worse hit island in Hurricanes Irma and Maria; Nurse Sutton explained that the South Caicos Clinic tender for refurbishment is already public.  Hurricane restoration work on the badly damaged medical centre is expected to take place within this new fiscal year.

The mobile clinic is growing in popularity reported the CNO; “any new initiative takes time to get off the ground so we have been advertising our mobile clinic services.  Just recently we have had our mobile clinic at the two major sports events…”

There had been a “lull” in service with the Mobile Clinic due to staffing shortages said Nurse Sutton; the five new recruits are expected to restore the robust schedule of the on-the-go clinic which takes quality care directly to the Provo public.

Budget Debate will begin on May 1, 2019.

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