The fleet of medical emergency response vehicles in St. Kitts and Nevis has been boosted by these three vehicles, thanks to the collaborative relationship between the Governments of St. Kitts and Nevis and the Republic of China (Taiwan).

“Thank you for having my Government on board,” Tsao stated, adding that health services are among the top investments a country can make for the betterment of its citizens and society in general. The “J.N.F. (Joseph N. France) General Hospital has grown in leaps and bounds throughout the years and the sterling service of all the doctors and nurses have improved and evolved.”

In response, Minister of Health Ms. Marcella Liburd thanked Taiwan for its longstanding bond of strong friendship.

“Over the years, the Ministry of Health has benefitted immensely from the technical cooperation of your Government, whether it is training of health care professionals, donations of equipment or through the financing of specific projects,” she remarked. “The addition of these two new ambulances to the Ministry’s EMS will enable us to strengthen the important service of transporting patients to and transferring patients between institutions.”

“It is timely, as we are fast approaching our festive season and during this period the EMS are often inundated with calls for assistance. The new ambulances will therefore significantly compliment our fleet.”

The emergency medical service will celebrate 12 years of operation on December 24, 2011. Figures cited by the Ministry of Health’s Permanent Secretary Andrew Skerritt reveal that just fewer than 9,000 people have been assisted by the EMS over the past five years. Last year’s figures totaled 1,864 persons.