Dr Maryam Abdool-Richards has confirmed that the Camp Balandra and Brooklyn Health Facilities were decommissioned.
Speaking this morning at the Ministry of Health media briefing, she said “Camp Balandra was commissioned when we had the returning nationals onboard the cruise from St Martin and there was a need to find a facility that could have held 68 to 70 persons at the time. The Brooklyn facility was initially commissioned as a step down facility.”
She added that “Both of these facilities were being rented, which came at a cost to the Ministry of Health and by extension the government of Trinidad and Tobago.
With time, Dr Richards said, they were able to use state facilities, for example facilities that fall under the state, such as the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) and the University of the West Indies (UWI).
Dr Richards said “We actually gave up 74 spaces; 42 at Camp Balandra and 32 at Brooklyn and in turn we have been able to develop 150 spaces at the UTT Valsayn Campus.
She noted that the decommissioning was based on the reduced need for those 74 beds and also as a cost saving measure moving forward.
COMMENTS