Royal visit breaks stress at Spanish Town Hospital
AFTER being overworked for roughly two years during the novel coronavirus pandemic, star-struck nursing staff at the Spanish Town Hospital in St Catherine on Wednesday experienced euphoria during a historic visit to the institution by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and his wife Catherine.
The prince and Catherine are visiting Jamaica to celebrate William’s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth’s 70th year as the Queen of England and the Commonwealth. Prince William along with Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Christopher Tufton unveiled a plaque at the institution to mark the historic visit.
Reminiscing on the rough times she has had throughout the pandemic, the hospital’s departmental nurse manager and coordinator of the maternity unit, Jannette Hendricks-Graham, said the staff was indeed lucky to be able to interact with members of the British Royal family. Hendricks-Graham was also very impressed by Catherine’s friendliness.
“This was my first time meeting a prince. We were looking forward to it and the fact that it came to fruition was a good feeling. It is indeed a historic visit. We at Spanish Town Hospital are elated and feel very special. They could have chosen other hospitals to visit and the fact that they came here, we are special,” she told the Jamaica Observer before adding that the royal husband and wife, who were appropriately attired for the occasion, succeeded at boosting their morale.
“It has motivated the staff because we put all into it to make this visit come off the way it did,” she said.
Further, Norine Roberts, a nurse at Spanish Town for 28 years, told the Observer when she started working there she never once imagined she would have met a real prince.
“I am feeling very excited knowing that I am a part of this history in the Spanish Town Hospital. I am experiencing the visit of a royal couple to our institution which I am so excited about. They were dressed appropriately. They looked very comfortable and were very courteous and when they greeted us they were very warm.
“The prince spoke to us and encouraged us as frontline workers to keep up the good work. I feel appreciated because our workers work very hard especially with a lack of resources and we have to try and use the equipment and supplies that we have here to meet the pandemic. This is really amazing,” she said.
Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Christopher Tufton said although it was a short visit by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, it created buzz and excitement, which he was pleased to experience.
“The tour went well. It exposed the duke and duchess to as much of the hospital operations as possible. Spanish Town as you know has a strong history and continues to do very well in terms of its response to the health care needs in the parish and of course during the COVID-19 period.
“The Duke and Duchess wanted as much information as they could in a short space of time. It really was about meeting the people and seeing the facilities and just learning a little about how we administer health care. I am very happy for the visit and it is obvious that the staff and patients were happy too. It created a buzz of excitement. The plaque we unveiled is really to commemorate the historic visit to acknowledge the frontline health-care workers.”