The Bahamas’ public spending on health was 3.6 per cent of GDP in 2011, equivalent to US$1,723 per capita. In the most recent survey, conducted between 1997 and 2009, there were 105 doctors, and 447 nurses and midwives per 100,000 people. Additionally, in the period 2007-12, 99 per cent of births were attended by qualified health staff and, in 2012, 91 per cent of one-year-olds were immunised with one dose of measles. In 2010, 100 per cent of the country’s population had access to adequate sanitation facilities. In the most recent survey, conducted in 2008, there were 48 pharmaceutical personnel per 100,000 people.
There are numerous medical centres and health care facilities throughout The Bahamas, including a few public and private hospitals, a psychiatric hospital, a geriatric hospital and a private clinic that undertakes cosmetic surgery. The largest hospital, and the country’s premier referral centre, is the Princess Margaret Hospital in Nassau.
Pharmaceuticals constitute a major export for The Bahamas. In addition to manufacturing firms, many leading international pharmaceutical companies have local representations in the country. The Bahamas Pharmacy Council provides regulation and control of practice, registration and licensing within the industry. In 2012 the council resolved to eradicate illicit and illegal pharmacy practices.
Current mental health legislation dates back to 1969, the year of promulgation of the Mental Health Act, although there have been recent revisions in the 2000s in an effort to protect the well-being and rights of mental health patients. There are 105.1 psychiatric hospitals per 100,000 people (2011).
