$31m drill purchase sparks calls for AuGD, IC probes
Published:Wednesday | May 21, 2025 | 12:10 AMSashana Small/Staff Reporter
Chairman of the South East Regional Health Authority (SERHA) Wentworth Charles has accused Opposition Spokesman on Health Dr Alfred Dawes of “completely” misleading and misrepresenting the facts surrounding the procurement of a neurosurgical drill for the Bustamante Hospital for Children in St Andrew.
Dawes has disclosed that his investigations into the procurement process for the $31-million drill has revealed what he describes as “obvious corruption [and] blatant mismanagement” taking place in the Ministry of Health and Wellness and SERHA.
During a press conference yesterday, he shared that he would be asking the Auditor General’s Department (AuGD) and the Integrity Commission (IC) to investigate the purchase of the drill.
In response, Charles said: “I welcome all the investigations … auditor general, Integrity Commission, and all the other agencies that have responsibilities, including the procurement commission that approved [this matter].”
PROCUREMENT PROCESS QUESTIONED
Dawes, in the meantime, divulged what he claims is evidence of the hijacking of the procurement process, “where an internal source determined that a fair price for that drill was $31 million”.
According to him, the company that won the bid to supply the hospital with the drill had imported two similar drills months earlier.
Dawes further asserted that the company’s Customs declaration form, which he said was accompanied by an invoice from the manufacturer, revealed that one of the drills was purchased for US$1,600, and an additional J$90,000 was paid in Customs fees.
Additionally, he stated that the drills were not new but refurbished.
“It cost the company $250,000 to have that drill in Jamaica. Is the $31-million drill at the Bustamante Hospital for Children one of these drills that were imported in November last year?” Dawes asked.
“If it is a case where the drill that was purchased from the same company just after these two drills were imported is a different drill, what was the justification for paying $31 million for a drill that could have been brought and landed in Jamaica for less than $300,000? Is that a fair price?” he asked further.
The neurosurgical drill is designed to support critical brain and spinal surgeries in paediatric patients.
Charles, in a statement last month, shared that it was the first of its kind in Jamaica and the Caribbean.
Describing Dawes, who has been publicly voicing concerns about the procurement process for the drill, as “mischievous”, Charles said SERHA engaged in a competitive bidding process and three suppliers submitted proposals, ranging from a low of approximately $12 million to a high of more than $50 million for the supply and delivery of the neurosurgical drill and advanced attachments for it, including a two-year preventative maintenance service contract.
He also said the bids were evaluated by doctors at the Kingston Public Hospital and the Bustamante Hospital for Children, who made their recommendations, which were approved by SERHA.
He said the drill would benefit multiple specialities at the Bustamante Hospital, including neurosurgery, faciomaxillary surgery, and the ear, nose and throat departments.
However, Dawes is maintaining that the money spent on this single drill could have been better used to improve resources and infrastructure at hospitals.
“This is not about politics. This is about the blatant misuse of taxpayer dollars,” he asserted.
He added: “What could have possessed someone to spend $31 million on a drill when they could have bought 1,000 of those same drills? When they could have bought a CT scanner so babies and children would not lose valuable time and increase their chance of complications and dying if they did a CT scan at Bustamante Hospital rather than going to Kingston Public Hospital to have a scan done?”