Permanent Secretary in Health Authority of Anguilla, Dr Bonnie Richardson-Lake said that patient care and quality health care delivery are paramount and all Anguillians in the health care industry must sign on and put their words into action. She made her remarks at the recently concluded Quality Management Workshop & Consultation on the Anguilla National Health Services Quality Policy.
“The Ministry of Health and, by extension the Government of Anguilla, has a very important role to play in ensuring patient safety and the delivery of quality health care in Anguilla,” she said.
“But so too does each of us… I encourage each of you to work in partnership with us, in delivering the highest level of health care possible. Remember, ‘concern for patient safety and quality of care’, which is sincerely held and repeatedly expressed, but nevertheless is not carried through into action, is as much protection from needless patient deaths, harm and dissatisfaction as no concern at all. Let us ensure that we act on our words”, she told the workshop participants.
During the workshop, Ms Katrina Smith, Country Programme Specialist with PAHO, presented an overview of PAHO/WHO Quality Initiatives and the 21 health targets in the Caribbean and the Americas. Other presenters included Anguilla’s Health Services Quality Policy, and related matters, were Mrs Alma Hughes, Senior Health Services Quality Officer; Mrs Serene Carter-Davis, retired Chief Nursing Officer; and Mrs Alicia Haywood, Acting Director of Nursing Services.
“To improve and maintain the quality of health services in Anguilla, a comprehensive system of Total Quality Management will be developed. This approach will be established through the Directorate of Health Services Quality Management and the Health Sector Quality Council (National Steering Team) at the Ministry of Health. It will focus on a formal mechanism for effective networking with management units in the public and private sectors; the establishment and implementation of a Quality Award System as the driving force behind quality and continuous improvement, and the establishment and monitoring of a client feedback mechanism.
The event, sponsored by the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), was held at the Anguilla Community College on Thursday, November 14.
