Anything Barbadian entertainment superstar Rihanna does attracts attention. So that her planned charity ball in Beverly Hills, California, next month to raise funds for philanthropic purposes cannot escape our notice. Thankfully, some of those funds will be for the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH), which is in need.
This gesture by Rihanna comes at a time when the QEH is in the spotlight, often for the wrong reasons. It has been the centre of much negative attention, given the plurality of problems besetting what still is this island’s main critical care health facility. Unfortunately, Rihanna’s fundraising efforts will not be sufficient to eliminate the problems afflicting the QEH, which later this month starts celebrations of its golden anniversary.
The hospital’s ailments clearly cannot be resolved by the political directorate alone in view of the unresolved issues which have spanned different political administrations over many years. There is an urgent need to improve the QEH rather than simply continually bemoaning its weaknesses. This requires a new governance model, which must embrace the public and not just focus on the health professionals and technocrats.
This is where Rihanna’s gesture is a lesson that should be copied in Barbados. There is nothing wrong with the well-heeled staging a fundraising ball for the same purpose, but the average person must also be involved in the effort to help the QEH, which is the only place most of them can turn to in times of major health care needs.
The hospital needs money to achieve many of its objectives, including the purchase of critical supplies, but it needs help that goes beyond cutting a ribbon or presenting a cheque. There is a level of volunteerism and personal involvement that can be much more impactful if businesses, non-governmental organisations, community groups and individuals seek to help.
That is why philanthropy is so significant and should be embraced by most Barbadians – individual and corporate – in relation to the hospital. It would give the public the opportunity to be purposefully involved and meaningfully engaged with the institution.
There are many great ideas from people across Barbados on how to help the QEH to function at the highest level of efficiency. The desire is for Barbados to not only have but to be seen to have the very best health facility in the region. A new generation of health care professionals, administrators and, most important, patients and the public are demanding that there must be a greater level of transparency and accountability in the hospital’s operations.
At the same time, those leading health care in Barbados will have to be more embracing. There can be no dividing line, whether based on class, creed, political affiliation or professional status. We must all reach out and help to make the QEH a much better place.