700 patients treated at HCCI
(CNS): The Shetty hospital which has been open to patients for six months has seen over seven hundred patients come through its doors with either heart or joint issues, doctors said last week. They have now carried out more than 50 different procedures with both cardiac and orthopaedic patients. Health City Cayman Islands was originally billed as a facility that would offer affordable care to patients in North America but it has been focusing on the Caribbean region as it awaits its accreditation by the Joint Commission in the US. Officials said they expected the hospital would get the nod from the US health standards body before February next year when American patient numbers are expected to increase.
At present however, doctors said, that they are working towards creating a specialist heart clinic at the facility spearheaded by Dr Devi Shetty for the Caribbean region and are working with regional health authorities.
Speaking at a press briefing regarding the first LVAD procedure at the East End facility on Thursday the hospital’s medical director, Dr Chandy Abraham, explained that the hospital is reaching out to and in talks across the region about the facility and what service and partnerships it can offer to Caribbean health authorities.
Dr Abraham also said that 21 children in Haiti have been identified as possible patients for the free operations promised by Dr Shetty to mark the opening of the Cayman hospital. With no local kids in need and most of the regional patients having health insurance cover, the doctor explained that it was Haiti where the need was the greatest and it was hoped that the first of those young patients will be coming to the hospital in the next few weeks.
The 140 bed facility is expected to launch Cayman’s medical tourism sector and both the local investors involved in the development of the hospital and Joseph Imparato, another local developer, are expected to begin work in the coming months on hotel accommodation, as well as other facilities and amenities to support the expected growth in visiting patients and their family and friends.
The long term project is still billed as ultimately becoming a 2000 bed healthcare city which will also include a training hospital and medical college. There is hope that more young Caymanians will take up healthcare as a profession and while most of the medical staff at the Shetty hospital were brought from India as time goes on those jobs are expected to go to qualified local and regional personnel.
Category: Health
1) Opened in Februry 2014. 700 patients seen. That's 117 patients a month: an averge of 4 patients a day. 50 surgeries in 6 months is an average of one every four days. What are all the staff members doing all day log? How are the medical and (more importantly) the surgical specialists maintaining their skill sets? An average of 4 patients a day among how many physcians? These "world-class" doctors must be bored out of their minds! Where are the anticipated numbers of medical tourism patients? I wonder how many of the 117 patients/month have actually travelled from anywhere abroad to have treatment? My guess –very few.
2) Apart from the temporary inrease in jobs during construction, how has this project been "good for Cayman", or rather good for Caymanians directly? It's a private business essentially subsidized by the Caymanian people through the extraordinary tax and duty exemptions given by the last government. What can we expect in return for the mlllions and millions of dollars we'll give in duty concessions over the next 50+ years? For a start, at this early stage, does anyone know how many intial full time jobs have been created for Caymanians at Health City? What exactly is the ratio of Caymanian to Expatriate employees?
Much respect. I wish this venture every success and hope that soon it'll be considered one of the leading and most innovative providers of healthcare in the Caribbean.
The LVAD surgery performed the other day is a monumental achievement and to be less than 1 year old and already a Caribbean first in this area is really something.
Keep it up, HCCI doctors and staff.
What a great thing this is for Cayman, Thanks Mac for making this happen..There are plenty of people out here who actually appreciate what you've done and what you were trying to accomplish…
Oh wow, I thought it was far less. Good for them. 🙂
Bravo !
this is the best thing McKeeva ever did
And make no mistake about it, it was McKeeva whobrought this
hospital here
McKeeva did not bring this hospital. The timeline is that Shetty was brought here by his friend Mr. Chandi. They then approached McKeeva as the Premier in the same way as they would have approached any other person who was Premier at that time. It was only after that initial meeting that McKeeva went to India. Get your facts right.
The ones that are in now would have turned it down,so we must give credit to McKeeva and the UDP,so to McKeeva i say thank you a million.
He/She is partially correct. Shetty took one look at McKeeva and the rest of the MLA's and decided there are lots of potential cardiac customers in Cayman.
why dont YOU get your facts right ?
I said McKeeva brought it here
EVERYBODY else said NO !!
so, thanks McKeeva !!
15 thumbs down ??? are you kidding me ?
what happened ? the truth hurts ? you people cant admit that Mac did
something right for once ?
shame on you for the thunbs down
Thanks Mac
Can for once we all agree that this is something positive for Cayman?
Speaking of Cities… How is that Cayman Enterprise City coming along? I keep looking for the cranes.