Regrettably, our dearly beloved government of the day never followed up
on the offer. Additionally, another attempt was made to assemble a
team subsequent to the Ivan offer -- but, this too, was shunned.
In the last year, I learned of his dilemma and was asked to intervene.
But, after communicating with the then Minister of Health, my effort
was met with a level of indifference which confirmed for me the
frustration which this "son of the soil" must have experienced in his
effort to serve his fellow Grenadians.
Well, guess what!!! The St. Lucians accepted his offer --- having seen
the potential which Dr. George's expertise would bring to their health
care system. Within the last two months, he wrote to me informing me
that he would be taking a team to the neighbouring island, and would
subsequently let me know how things went. Over the weekend, I received
the following letter and photos:-
My Dear friends:
To say that I have been busy during the last week would be a huge
understatement. Propelled by the commitment to memorialize a dear
friend Dr. Hector Collison who was tragically killed in a plane crash
in Virginia in March 2008, I went to St. Lucia to set up an advanced
laparoscopy program at the Tapion hospital.
He had been aware of the hospital's desire to set up such a program and
during my visit to St. Kitts in January, 2008 he put me in touch with
Dr. Trona Bennett -- a gynecologist at Tapion. She immediately FedExed
my credentialing package, and during the succeeding months we put all
the nuts and bolts together.
I was able to secure the sponsorship of The Pan American Health and
Education Foundation and the support of many corporations including the
Washington Hospital Center, Ethicon Endo Surgery Inc, Ethicon Inc. and
Strker Endoscopy. Finally I selected a team of three to accompany me.
They were Barbara Jackson, nurse; Tyronne Crawford, Surgical assistant
and David Vandygriff, biomedical engineer. A representative from
Johnson and Johnson who lives in Trinidad subsequently joined us.
I arrived on Friday afternoon August 1 and had time only to meet with
the hospital leadership for dinner. On Saturday, I evaluated most of
the patients for surgery and unpacked the 20 or so boxes of equipment.
The biomedical engineer was on hand to see all equipment set up and
functional. My nurse and surgical assistant arrived on Sunday and were
ready to operate with me the following morning.
The training that I conducted included lectures, surgery and skills
workshops from Monday through Thursday. Some of the physicians who
participated practiced at both the private and public hospitals.
Gynecologists, general surgeons, a urologist and several nurses
attended the sessions. The entire event proceeded as though we had
rehearsed it several times. I think that the credit is due not just to
my team, but to the Tapion hospital whose cutting edge philosophy is
much more than a slogan.
Drs. Bennett, Bishop, the J&J rep and Dr. George
The hospital is efficient and gets the job done effectively. You would
not guess that as you drive to the facility. The modest sign saying
Tapion, the winding narrow road filled with pot holes and the modest
structure do not prepare you for what's inside. From the medical
director and the executive director to the nursing staff and the
administrative and maintenance teams, one could sense dedication.
In fact, the briefing that I first received was by the properties
manager who picked me up at the airport. He seemed to have the answer
to everything except the clinical information. He explained the mystery
of the white birds that had a permanent nest on one of the trees near
the hotel. In his Saskatchewan drawl, he explained, "they are egrets.
Every egret has a cow. They follow the cow and eat the ticks off its
hyde".
My team was fascinated with the dedication and expertise of the
hospital staff, particularly the nurses. Most of all they were
mesmerized by the hospitality. They seemed shocked when an interview
that was recorded on Thursday afternoon was aired on St. Lucia TV that
evening during the farewell reception. I would have been similarly
impacted except that my early years were spent in Grenada so I am well
aware of the Caribbean way.
For me, the most poignant moment was when I met the patient from
Grenada. She had been referred to me and would have come to Washington
for care but I was able to include her in the St . Lucia mission. She
and family sat happily with me after her successful laparoscopic
surgery. She saved hundreds of dollars by traveling to Tapion instead
of Washington DC. My sincere hope is that the program will flourish and
that patients from the Eastern Caribbean could soon go to Tapion to
receive quality care for minimally invasive surgery like laparoscopy.
Benefits of laparoscopic surgery include less bleeding and scarring,
less pain after surgery, quicker recovery and a better cosmetic effect.
Grenada? I would have been thrilled to have done this in my homeland. I
tried. Having said that, if I am invited I will be happy to give of my
services. I will be back in St. Lucia to conduct additional sessions
and I have asked and the Tapion team has agreed to accommodate
Grenadian doctors if they would like to participate. I would also be
happy to operate in Grenada, but that requires planning.
I have attached a few pictures from the mission.
Sincerely,
John
