Minister of Health, Wellness, and Elderly Affairs Moses Jn Baptiste has assured that efforts are underway to fix the leaky roof in the waiting area of the Dr. Betty Wells Urban Polyclinic, which officially opened on Monday.
The polyclinic is located on the site of the former Victoria Hospital, now the Dr. Winston C. Parris Medical Complex. All services previously offered at the now-closed Castries Health Centre have been transferred to the urban polyclinic.
However, there were complaints about leaks in the waiting area of the facility. Jn Baptiste, speaking at a pre-Cabinet press briefing on Monday, confirmed that the issue is being addressed.
“The waiting room at the Dr. Betty Wells Urban Polyclinic is the waiting room which has been there for a while. We are going to refurbish this waiting room,” he said. “Yes, we are aware that the waiting room requires some repair and just today, I was informed that our technicians are going up there to assess the situation and yes, something will be done about it.”
The minister also revealed that further refurbishments are in the works for the Dr. Winston C. Parris Medical Complex.
“The whole layout will be changed. The security booth, the waiting area, the car park, all of this will be changed,” he disclosed, adding that rehabilitation of the polyclinic is expected to be complete by next year.
“The rest of the urban polyclinic will be rehabilitated. We are working on what was called the Accident and Emergency Building. This building has been gutted, as we’ve reported before, and this will become another urgent care and Accident and Emergency Unit for Saint Lucia.”
Jn Baptiste said there were also plans to expand the medical team at the polyclinic.
“There were two district medical officers at the Castries Wellness Centre. We now have eight new doctors for the polyclinic. We have also engaged two additional senior medical officers who will be engaged with the Ministry of Health, and their roles will be one, urgent care and two, a supervisor for the district medical officers,” he said.
Regarding the closure of the Castries Health Centre, the health minister explained that the decision was based on assessments by professionals from the environmental, health, and labour departments, who deemed the building structurally unsound.
Initially, when the centre was closed, healthcare services were redirected to the La Clery and Entrepot Health Centres. While the Dr. Betty Wells Urban Polyclinic is now operational, Jn Baptiste noted that plans are in place to increase supplies and human resources at those two health centres.
Under the first phase of its opening, the polyclinic is providing expanded services, including specialised eye care at the National Eye Clinic, urgent care services, general medical clinics, diabetic and hypertensive clinics, pharmacy services, and minor wound management and dressing services.
Operating hours are Monday to Sunday, including holidays, from 8 a.m. to midnight.
The National Eye Clinic operates Monday to Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
