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Rotarians come good for Savanna-la-Mar infirmary

Published:Thursday | September 5, 2024 | 12:10 AMAlbert Ferguson/Gleaner Writer
Celebrating generosity (from left): Andre Griffiths, chief executive officer at the Westmoreland Municipal Corporation; Danree Delancy, mayor of Savanna-la-Mar; Councillor Joan Bahadur, chairperson for the Poor Relief Committee at the Westmoreland Municipa
Herbert McKenis
Celebrating generosity (from left): Andre Griffiths, chief executive officer at the Westmoreland Municipal Corporation; Danree Delancy, mayor of Savanna-la-Mar; Councillor Joan Bahadur, chairperson for the Poor Relief Committee at the Westmoreland Municipal Corporation, accepting the donated items from Dr Jean Powell of the Savanna-la-Mar Rotary Club. Others sharing in the occasion are Angella Morris, poor relief officer, and Bevon Pennycooke, acting nurse aid at the Savanna-la-Mar Infirmary, Demerce Guscott, immediate past president of the Savanna-la-Mar Rotary Club, his daughter Kylie Guscott, and Ardold Douglas, past assistant governor.

WESTERN BUREAU:

THE SAVANNA-LA-MAR Rotary Club, in Westmoreland, emerged as Good Samaritans to the 90 residents at the Savanna-la-Mar infirmary earlier this week, coming to their assistance with a supply of crucial sanitary items.

“Today we are presenting 30 boxes of adult pampers and 10 boxes of bed pads to the Savanna-la-Mar infirmary to help satisfy the needs for these items,” said Dr Jean Powell, a senior member of the Savanna-la-Mar Rotary Club, who is based overseas.

The generous donation also includes bedside tables and a patient bed lift, which will provide nurses with an easier method to move around bed-ridden persons at the facility.

Powell, who did doctoral studies in nursing, said she has been making personal donations to the parish’s infirmary for over 30 years. However, since becoming a Rotarian, she has increased her contribution tremendously.

Savanna-la-Mar’s mayor, Danree Delancy, who are also chairman of the Westmoreland Municipal Corporation (WMC), expressed much gratitude to the Rotary Club for their timely donation, noting that it will help to alleviate the high costs associated with caring for the residents of the infirmary. The infirmary, which falls under the management of the WMC, is responsible for nursing care, hygiene needs, diets tailored to individual requirements, the safety of residents, medical assistance, and managing the administration of medications.

“We want to thank the Savanna-la-Mar Rotary Club for reaching out to us with these supplies because it costs us millions of dollars on a monthly basis to run the infirmary,” said Delancy. “When kind-hearted people like our friends from the Savanna-la-Mar Rotary Club can come along and make contributions like these, it goes a long way in helping us to meet the needs of those we cared for at our facility.” Councillor Joan Bahadur, who chairs the Poor Relief Committee at the WMC, under which the infirmary falls, issued a call to the business community and non-governmental organisations to follow the good example of the Rotarians.

“We are in need of many essential items, such as food of all kinds, toiletries, bed linens, and sanitary supplies,” said Bahadur.