Probably one of the most accomplished Belizean medical practitioners made a contribution to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital. On Tuesday June 29th the Dr. Lennox Pike Medical Professional Lounge was declared opened. The lounge says Dr. Pike came as a result of requests made for him to assist the hospital’s development. “I don’t think it’s a particularly generous but for me I want to say it is a great pleasure to
do anything at all I can do for my own people in Belize” says Pike. He however does encourage other persons to come forward and also assist in the hospital’s development.
The lounge features a dining table, refrigerator, flat screen television, a computer with internet access, sofa sets and wash basins among other accessories. It will be used by doctors and nurses of the KHMH’s Accident and Emergency Unit. Chief Executive Officer at the KHMH Dr. Gary Longsworth explains that the staff at the A&E work on shifts and hardly have downtime from work since the demand in that section of the hospital is great. He adds that a lounge is an ideal area where doctors and nurses can get away from the stressful environment in order to alleviate stress at the appropriate time.
The lounge comes at a cost of some 25 thousand dollars and is located near the A&E section of the hospital in an area that housed a portion of the physiotherapy room. Dr. Longsworth says that very little was done to get the place in terms of infrastructure other than placing a wall to separate the physiotherapy room and the lounge. However with the addition of the lounge, space was taken from the physiotherapy center and Dr. Longsworth explains that plans are underway to expand those services. He comments however that there must me more emphasis on inpatient physiotherapy where more work should be focused on work to be done in the wards. He adds that he does not see a problem in shrinking the physiotherapy room since these services do not necessarily have to be offered in the hospital compound.
As for other development in the hospital to benefit the staff, Dr. Longsworth says that the hospital’s management is looking at other areas including an outdoor deck for staff to relax on at lunch time and other lounge areas for other staff members. Additionally a kiddie play area is being looked at to be installed for children who are not allowed to visit patients.
The namesake for the lounge, Dr. Lennox Pike is a well accomplished medical doctor having trained in Jamaica, London, and the United States. He was Belize’s Chief Medical Officer in the 1970’s. He has certification from the UK in Anesthesiology, Community and Public health in the UK, Ambulatory and Family Medicine in the U.S.
