The Ministry of Home Affairs signed a memorandum of understanding last Friday with Tapion Hospital and Rotary Caribbean Plus to open an artificial limb centre in Saint Lucia.
The centre aims to make prosthetic limbs more accessible and affordable for individuals with disabilities after concerns about limited availability and high costs.
To be located within the Tapion Hospital, it will serve the more than 400 residents who currently require prosthetics, offering not only feet but also hands, fingers and other limb parts.
During pre-cabinet on Tuesday, the Minister for Home Affairs and Persons with Disabilities, Jeremiah Norbert, said training and local expertise will play a key role in the programme. He noted that the country already has people who have some experience in building and fitting prosthetic limbs who will be further trained by international experts.
“We have experts coming down from Virginia who are going to train them. They are going to be certified and they will be in a position to provide even a better service for individuals here who require prosthetic limbs.”
Addressing the high costs often associated with prosthetics, Norbert assured that affordability will remain central to the centre’s mission. “The emphasis and focus is not really on the cost… we are going to make it affordable to all individuals in this country.”
He noted that below-knee prosthetics typically range between $6,000 to $10,000, while above-knee devices can exceed $10,000 to $12,000.
Norbert, who uses a prosthetic limb, emphasised the broader impact of mobility and independence. “The whole idea is to reinstate that level of economic independence, physical independence, your mobility [and to]…move about without having to be dignified or somebody having to carry you.”
The centre is expected to begin operations next year, offering residents not only essential prosthetic devices but also comprehensive support for physical and psychosocial rehabilitation.
Any third-party or user posts, comments, replies, and third-party entries published on the St. Lucia Times website (https://stluciatimes.com) in no way convey the thoughts, sentiments or intents of St. Lucia Times, the author of any said article or post, the website, or the business. St. Lucia Times is not responsible or liable for, and does not endorse, any comments or replies posted by users and third parties, and especially the content therein and whether it is accurate.
St. Lucia Times reserves the right to remove, screen, edit, or reinstate content posted by third parties on this website or any other online platform owned by St. Lucia Times (this includes the said user posts, comments, replies, and third-party entries) at our sole discretion for any reason or no reason, and without notice to you, or any user. For example, we may remove a comment or reply if we believe it violates any part of the St. Lucia Criminal Code, particularly section 313 which pertains to the offence of Libel. Except as required by law, we have no obligation to retain or provide you with copies of any content you as a user may post, or any other post or reply made by any third-party on this website or any other online platform owned by St. Lucia Times. All third-parties and users agree that this is a public forum, and we do not guarantee any confidentiality with respect to any content you as a user may post, or any other post or reply made by any third-party on this website. Any posts made and information disclosed by you is at your own risk.
