Jamaica’s Prime Minister Lauds Adventist Hospital for Excellence and Commitment to Healthcare

The currently 60-bed healthcare facility was first established in 1944.

April 9, 2024 | Kingston, Jamaica | Dyhann Buddoo-Fletcher and IAD News Staff

Prime Minister of Jamaica, The Most Honorable Andrew Holness, lauded Andrews Memorial Hospital–an Adventist-operated hospital, for its excellence and commitment to healthcare during a recent thanksgiving service on the institution’s 80^th anniversary on Apr. 6, 2024, in Kingston, Jamaica.

Speaking to Jamaican government leaders, members of the diplomatic core, AMH Board members, church and institutional leaders, workers, retirees, medical consultants, private and public sector leaders, friends, and well-wishers, Prime Minister Holness in referencing the theme, “80 Years—Honoring the Past, Embracing the Future: Healing, Compassion, Innovation,” said Andrews Memorial Hospital embodies excellence in the healthcare sector.

“What truly sets Andrews Memorial Hospital apart is its unwavering commitment to wholistic health, a principle deeply rooted in the beliefs and values of the Seventh-day Adventist Church,” said Holness.

The wholistic approach to health is reflected in the hospital’s diverse range of services including the outpatient clinic, dental clinic, imaging, and laboratory services pharmacy, he added. “The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Jamaica has been a steadfast ally in the fight against non-communicable diseases, partnering with the Ministry of Health and Wellness and endorsing initiatives such as Jamaica moves.”

Journey since 1943

The historical journey from 1943, when the officers of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists and the Inter-American Division saw the need for a healthcare facility in the region, was presented in a video report which chronicled the birth of Andrews Memorial Hospital in 1944, at 27 Hope Road, Kingston, Jamaica, named in honor of the medical missionary John N. Andrews.

“As we reflect on the journey that has brought us to this significant moment, we must give God thanks for His goodness, which keeps running after us,” Mr. Donmayne Gyles, president of the hospital in his address acknowledged past leaders, key stakeholders, and corporate partners.

Gyles thanked the Ministry of Health and Wellness, the Medical Council of Jamaica, the Nursing Council of Jamaica, the United States Embassy, the Indian High Commission, Adventist-layman’s Services and Industries (ASI), the GSI Foundation Jamaica, and all other suppliers of goods and services. “It is through your hard work, commitment, and shared vision that we have been able to fulfil our mission of extending Christ’s healing ministry to all those in need.”

Gyles thanked the Andrews Memorial Seventh-day Adventist Church and the Tai family “for laying the platform by which we will establish a dialysis unit within our hospital.”

Collaboration with AHI and AdventHealth

A collaboration with Adventist Health International (AHI) and Loma Linda University Health (LLUH), which, through a grant obtained, helped with the upgrade of the medical laboratory, which will aid in clinical research and later the accreditation of the lab.

Gyles added that a longstanding partnership with AdventHealth (formerly Florida Hospital), which, through its influence, contributed a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) unit and most recently announced the contribution of a Catheterization Laboratory (Cath Lab), which is scheduled for shipment soon.

Both systems will be operational this calendar year and help bolster service, said Gyles.

Monty Jacobs, director of AdventHealth’s Global Missions, in his greetings on behalf of Terry Shaw, AdventHealth president; Dr. Audrey Gregory, vice president, AdventHealth and Executive sponsor for Andrews Memorial Hospital; AHI President Dr. Richard Hart and Dr. D.P Harris, who is also the AHI representative on the AMH Board explained both hospitals are united in its mission.

“Both Andrews Memorial Hospital and AdventHealth aspire not just to provide physical healthcare to those who enter its doors, both of our organizations aspire to bring whole-person care, mind, body and spirit, to our communities under a common mission to extend the healing ministry of Jesus Christ,” said Jacobs.

Celebrating service and ministry to people

Chairman of the AMH Board and President of the Jamaica Union Pastor Everett Brown, charged “Today we have come to celebrate your service and ministry to people, to celebrate with you the contribution made by those who laid the foundation and continue to carry the baton of Christian service here at Andrews Memorial Hospital during the past eight decades,” he said.

“The love, care, compassion and excellent service and ministry that the members of the AMH team offer people in their pain, people who are depressed, confused, traumatized and hopeless, is an extension of the Healing ministry of Jesus,” added Pastor Brown.

Gyles reported that AMH’s transformational culture shift in healthcare to become a High-Reliability Healthcare Organization (HRHO) would be launched on Apr. 8, 2024.

“HRHO will gradually take on a strategic shift in the hospital’s optimum service care and delivery of zero harm, with future to develop the hospital’s plant and facilities and offer added services to Jamaica,” Gyles said.

He then extended the invitation, “come with us on this journey as we embark on a new phase of our development as we embark on a new era of healthcare to the community we serve.”

To learn more about Andrews Memorial Hospital its services, plans, and initiatives, visit amhosp.org