Chinese medical ship to assist in clearing surgery backlog across all health regions
Published:Saturday | December 6, 2025 | 12:07 AMAlbert Ferguson/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Jamaica’s chief medical officer, Dr Jacquiline Bisasor-McKenzie, says the arrival of China’s state-of-the-art medical ship could not have come at a more critical moment, describing it as a “rare and invaluable opportunity” to tackle the island’s mounting surgical backlog and restore key health services disrupted by Hurricane Melissa.
“This ship being present here at this time presents an opportunity to get some of our elective surgical cases done and also provides opportunities for us to do some outpatient services that we would not normally have the opportunity to do,” Bisasor-McKenzie told The Gleaner following a tour of the vessel on Thursday.
She noted that, while the ministry’s Western Regional Health Authority – which has a network of four hospitals and 84 health centres strategically deployed throughout the region covering the parishes of Trelawny, St James, Hanover and Westmoreland – was hardest hit by the hurricane, health systems across other regions remain under severe pressure as patients continue to self-refer or are redirected to major hospitals such as Kingston Public, Bustamante, Spanish Town, Mandeville, May Pen, and St Ann’s Bay.
“Even though the western region has been affected, other regions have been getting a lot of patients,” Bisasor-McKenzie said. “We are really hoping that we are able to take full advantage of this opportunity to get as much as we can done.”
Regional health authorities have already contacted hospitals and reached out to patients whose surgeries were postponed. Some outpatient services have quietly resumed, and the Bisasor-McKenzie noted that patients from Westmoreland were already on board the ship by midday.
“In the area we know communication is down, but we have started some outpatient service… patients that may have gotten a date to come in or have surgery in the long run are now being scheduled to come,” she added.
Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton labelled the mission as a powerful demonstration of international solidarity following one of the most destructive storms in Jamaica’s recorded history.
IMPRESSED WITH FACILITY
“In the true spirit of friendship and cooperation, the People’s Republic of China have adjusted their schedule to be here earlier than originally planned,” Tufton said. “We were very impressed with what we saw. The facility is ultra modern… technically capable, and we believe that the Jamaican people will benefit from it.”
More than 100 clinicians and support team members are on board the vessel, which houses several operating theatres, advanced diagnostic equipment, and a suite of specialist services. Over the coming days, the ship will deliver outpatient care in Montego Bay before sailing to Kingston and Falmouth in Trelawny, where it will perform a series of elective surgeries including hernia repairs.
Chinese Ambassador Wang Jingfeng underscored the scale of the humanitarian gesture, noting that the ship journeyed over 10,000 nautical miles to provide free medical services and reinforce Jamaica’s recovery.
“With the assistance of the Chinese Government and the medical crew, I believe Jamaica will rebuild stronger friendships,” the ambassador said.
Tufton added that the mission is helping to fill temporary gaps created when many Jamaican health workers were themselves impacted by the hurricane.
“The policy approach after the storm has been to get emergency services back up quickly so no Jamaican who needs life-saving care is denied,” he said. “The Chinese vessel is helping us to deal with patients who may have been on a waiting list, especially for elective surgeries we cannot address right now.”
The ship’s deployment marks one of the most significant foreign medical interventions since the COVID-19 pandemic and is expected to provide critical relief as Jamaica works to stabilise its battered health sector.