Health Care: the Health of the Nation is the Wealth of the Nation

The government of The Bahamas has placed a top priority on health care.

Impressive success in health-care sector

Bernard Nottage, Minister of Health and National Insurance

Bernard Nottage, Minister of Health and National Insurance, explains that the government is currently making significant investments in improving the country’s health-care facilities, including expanding and upgrading the local hospital in Freeport, opening international-class health-care centers in the Family Islands, and upgrading Princess Margaret Hospital in New Providence or building a completely new facility there.

The government also aims to position The Bahamas as a major player in the fast-growing medical tourism sector. As Nottage points out, “We have physicians who have been trained at top medical institutions in the United States and in the United Kingdom. We have a broad spectrum of specialists and a wide range of services that people who are seeking medical care in a comfortable environment can access.”

Promoting preventative care is a top priority for the government. As Nottage puts it, “Our objective is not just to create more hospital beds, but rather to ensure a healthier population so that we can keep people out of hospitals.”

The government has been getting many inquiries from American medical facilities and other health-care enterprises interested in developing medical and clinical training centers in The Bahamas. “We have resisted any relationship that will not produce a product that is up to the highest quality standards,” Nottage says.

Minister Nottage also oversees the country’s national health-care system, including the social security fund currently valued at some USD 1.3 billion, an impressive figure for a country the size of The Bahamas. “We are investing in housing programs so that these funds not only continue to grow, but they also serve to benefit the community. We have also set aside money to build new medical facilities, and the National Insurance Board is beginning to explore investment opportunities abroad,” he explains.

The Public Hospitals Authority

“We provide safe and high-quality health care here in The Bahamas.”

Ruth Millar, Chairman

The Public Hospitals Authority (PHA) of The Bahamas, established in 1999 and under the direction of the Ministry of Health, has proved instrumental in promoting a world-class national health-care system.
The PHA oversees the country’s three public hospitals – Princess Margaret Hospital, Sandilands Rehabilitation Center and Rand Memorial Hospital – as well as the National Emergency Medical Services, The Bahamas National Drug Agency, and the Materials Management Directorate.

The PHA has achieved outstanding results. As Ruth Millar, Chairman, explains, “We are moving toward international accreditation for our high-quality health-care system, and we are in the process of installing state-of-the-art imaging and information systems.”

With an annual budget of USD 142.4 million, around 96 percent of which comes from the government, the PHA also provides services that bring in revenues, which this year totaled USD 6 million.

Millar assures Americans that they can count on high-quality health care when they visit or relocate to The Bahamas, and she encourages more joint medical research efforts involving the two countries. She comments, “Baby-boomers looking for second homes can be confident about the health-care services available in The Bahamas. We have excellent in-hospital care and well-trained physicians who have met international certification standards.”

The Bahamas has already established research and clinical partnerships with several American hospitals and universities, including Yale University, whose resident physicians regularly provide services at Princess Margaret Hospital. Miller also cites long-term links with the University of Miami concerning a pediatric program, Baptist Hospital concerning cardiac medicine, and Mount Sinai Hospital in a treatment program for cancer patients.

Describing The Bahamas as a “wellness” destination, Millar concludes, “We want people to know that we provide safe and high-quality health care here in The Bahamas, and that we are eager to form more mutually beneficial partnerships and relationships with American institutions.”