The Tribune

THE establishment of the Medi-Centre Medical Plaza at the corner of Prince Charles Drive and Beatrice Avenue is a wonderful example of what teamwork among Bahamians can accomplish, Minister of Health Dr Perry Gomez said.

Dr Gomez advised the principals of the practice to continue to expand their enterprise “based on addition and not division”.

“It is good to see what teamwork can accomplish in medicine,” Dr Gomez said.

“I visited Johns Hopkins some years ago and they had an acronym in the foyer which read: ‘Together Everyone Achieves More’. What you have demonstrated here with the completion of this wonderful facility is in the spirit of that acronym.

“The three of you working together, putting your resources and talents together, have now brought this gift to the Bahamas and I wish to salute you on that.

“People like to break up,” Dr Gomez said, “so don’t expand by dividing, expand by adding.”

The Medical Plaza is expected to open its doors for business on September 1, 2012.

The practice is a partnership between Bahamian doctors Nicholas Fox, James Johnson and Christopher Basden.

Dr Derwin Munroe, a dentist, and his team will operate as a practice within a practice.

Doctors Basden, Johnson and Fox have successfully operated Medi-Centres on Collins Avenue and Prince Charles Drive in the past.

“These doctors have built wonderful practices individually, and given their individual track records, the practice of medicine here will be of the same calibre, if not higher, than that of the quality of the building,” Dr Gomez said.

The Health Minister said he was “greatly impressed” by the facility and the fact that the practice was based on the “module of General Practice Care” the government has established over the years with the construction of polyclinics in Fleming Street, Flamingo Gardens, Elizabeth Estates and South Beach.

“This facility, by mimicking what has been done with the polyclinics in terms of objectives, is trying to provide comprehensive family practice and clinical care and preventative care for our people and I further salute you for that.”

Dr Gomez said he was “especially pleased” with the focus the practice will place on obstetrics and gynaecology, given the requirements of the Millennium Development Goals-4 for countries.

“We need to continue our high standards in obstetrics and gynaecology because all countries of the world are being asked to report in two years’ time on MDG4 which applies to infant mortality and which speaks to the quality of Ante-Natal care in every country.

“The Bahamas has work to do in that area and I look forward to you helping us to improve what we are doing,” he said.

Dr Christopher Basden said the move to the Medi-Centre medical Plaza will result in a further expansion services.

“While we will continue to be in the main primary care and obstetrics and gynaecology practice, our specialty will expand to include psychiatry,” Dr Basden said. “Our dental suite is greatly expanded to include five examination and treatment rooms; our Imaging Department will offer X-rays and mammography using state-of-the-art equipment and our dispensary will offer our most frequently used medications, providing patients with the convenience of making their visit complete.”