In May last year the Saint Lucia Medical and Dental Association (SLMDA) made abundantly clear its opposition to the use of the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model to fund local health facilities: “We will continue to be vigilant and vocal, and advocate No to PPP/joint ventures at the OKEU and SJH.” Strongly supporting this position was the opposition SLP, which has since described the Chastanet administration’s deliberations with Health City Cayman Islands Group as “conniving with foreign interests to hand over our OKEU to private interests for profit.” In case you’re wondering, that little snippet came from the Opposition Leader Philip J Pierre at a press conference in February this year.
On the other hand, the ROC President Tsai Ing-wen, during her visit to the St. Jude site, had this to say: “Since taking office, Prime Minister Allen Chastanet has pushed hard for improvements to St. Jude Hospital. Through the combined efforts of both our governments and Public Private Partnership, we can finally begin to realise the dreams that the people of Saint Lucia have looked forward to for such a long time.”
This is not dissimilar to what was expressed by former EU ambassador to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Mikael Barford who, in his February 21, 2016 OKEU naming ceremony address, advised: “Public Private Partnerships and service level agreements have proven successful in other countries to open up the healthcare market and make it attractive also for insurance companies and for tourists.”
While the focus tends to be on his words about the PPP, what he stated about the “economic viability” and “sustainability” of the OKEU, is just as noteworthy. “The EU is currently supporting the government to develop strategies and policies for the sustainable financing of the health sector and I know the issue of economic viability of this hospital is foremost in the minds of bureaucrats and lay persons alike.”
Before encouraging the then government “to be creative in its approach to income generation of the hospital”, Barford explained further that “The health sector is often viewed as a burden on a given country as it requires too much from the government’s treasury, while contributing little to the fund. However, the quality of the facility, equipment and staff of the Owen King EU Hospital holds enormous potential for the hospital to earn considerable income and to be self-sustaining.” Now where have I heard that repeated?
