KINGSTON, Jamaica. September 11, 2023. The Golden Spring Health Centre in St. Andrew has become the 47th facility of 100 health centres under the Ministry of Health and Wellness’ Adopt-A-Clinic Programme since 2017, as the initiative nears the midpoint of its adoption goal.
The Golden Spring Health Centre is a type-two facility with more than 86,000 patients registered at the clinic. It provides services in maternal and child health, curative, family planning, and mental health.
Speaking during the official ceremony for the adoption of the clinic on Friday, September 8, 2023, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, Minister of Health and Wellness, said, "We are at 47 and we are still going strong. There are a few others lined up, and the programme has gathered momentum over time."
The Health Centre has been adopted by the Watson Family RalRosa Foundation. The foundation has pledged $3.5 million to the facility over three years to provide minor infrastructure upgrades and expansions, maintenance and repairs, and the acquisition of equipment and furniture. The Adopt-A-Clinic Programme seeks to leverage the philanthropic support of the private sector and the diaspora to improve the primary healthcare system.
"What an adoption relationship provides, which is a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the adopter and the facility, is that it creates a relationship where some of these needs can be addressed, and they can be addressed quickly, and it is working," Minister Tufton pointed out.
Dr. Jacqueline Watson, Director of the Watson Family RalRosa Foundation, said that her family is delighted to be supporting this worthy cause that will, in the long run, benefit the thousands of people that the health centre continues to serve.
She added that the Foundation also supports the National Chest Hospital in St. Andrew, donating $3.5 million to the facility from a fundraising event held in June 2022 in Washington, DC, in the United States.
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