Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh says between 800 to 1,000 jobs will be available in 2019 when the Point Fortin Hospital is completed.
During a tour of the facility being built by Austrian firm VAMED Engineering GmbH &CO KG, Deyalsingh said the steelwork was completed while the project was 40 per cent completed.
While the Ministry has started the process for staffing the Point Fortin and Arima hospitals, Government was yet to make a decision on how the Children’s Hospital in Couva will be integrated into the public health system.
“The process for staffing all the new hospitals, Arima and Point Fortin, has already begun. We are in the process of identifying all the additional staff that will be required: Nurses, doctors, technicians and radiographers, all of those services will be ramped up.
“Once we decide how we are going to integrate Couva, then we will start," he said.
He said the South West Regional Health Authority will also be refurbishing the Point Fortin Area Hospital, which will be used as a tertiary care facility once the new hospital is completed. He said the critical process of getting consultant physicians to come to Point Fortin has already started and the old doctor’s quarters in Mahaica will be refurbished. He welcomed corporate sponsorship in getting that project done.
The new hospital was commissioned through an arrangement with the Austrian government at a cost of $1.5 billion. The sod was turned on May 21, 2015, by the former health minister, Fuad Khan, however, months had passed before any work began. Deyalsingh said that on assuming his ministerial portfolio, he was able to shave off $500 million off the new hospitals without reducing the amount of bed space.
In August, VAMED threatened to pack up and leave T&T, if they were not paid $79 million for work already done. The sum was to cover incremental monies to continue the project. Weeks later, payment was made.
Specs of new hospital
Structure being built to withstand a category 4 hurricane
Structure being built to withstand earthquakes up to 6.0
100-bed capacity
Burn's Unit
Heliport
Increased parking