Big fight against heart disease in Jamaica

Impacting Jamaica

The Heart Institute of the Caribbean (HIC) is on a massive drive to fight heart disease in Jamaica and the rest of the region. Located in Kingston, the institution, under the leadership of the highly respected and highly qualified Dr Ernest Madu, has engineered initiatives to make cardiovascular care affordable to all. He explained that many locals, including young doctors, have been trained by the Institute, hence making more professionals available across the country. Centres have been established in Mandeville and Ocho Rios to improve access to care and cut the need to travel into the capital Kingston. Additionally, there is a low-cost membership scheme for a fee of J$100, as part of the drive to make care available to as many people as possible. This gives members free consultation for an entire year. “Our key objective is still to provide accessible and high-quality cardiovascular care in the Caribbean, and to make such level of care available to all citizens,” declared Dr Madu. He noted that in Jamaica 40 per cent of deaths each year are from heart disease; and estimated that 7,500 Jamaicans have heart attacks annually. The Heart Institute of the Caribbean was opened for business in April 2005 and since then has provided life-saving cardiovascular care to more than 200,000 Jamaicans. Its head, Dr Madu, is an internationally recognised authority in cardiovascular medicine and innovative healthcare systems and solutions. He holds the academic rank of Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine and Advanced Imaging Technologies.