Grenada’s public spending on health was three per cent of GDP in 2011, equivalent to US$479 per capita. In the most recent survey conducted between 1997 and 2009, there were 98 doctors, and 398 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, 94 per cent of oneyear olds were immunised with one dose of measles. In 2010, 97 per cent of the country’s population had access to adequate sanitation facilities.
Grenada reportedly has one of the best health care systems in the Caribbean region (2012). In order to improve health and minimise the increasing costs of health care, Grenada has placed a lot of emphasis on primary health care and preventative measures. There are around seven medical centres and clinics in the country. St George’s General Hospital is the main facility and there is a small private hospital in the St Paul district, which has a 24-hour emergency room and can arrange air ambulance evacuation. A new hospital is currently being built in Grenada, which is expected to be finished in 2015. It will offer new state-of-the-art facilities and is intended to cater for medical tourists as well as residents.
The new hospital will replace St George’s. There are also two small rural hospitals: the Princess Alice Hospital and the Princess Royal Hospital. At the moment, all serious medical problems require air evacuation to a country with better medical facilities, but this situation may improve when the new hospital opens. The nearest decompression chambers are in Trinidad and Barbados.
There are more than 20 pharmaceutical companies in Grenada, although the country acquires most of its pharmaceuticals through the sub-regional programme managed by the Eastern Caribbean Drug Service. This ensures that regional standards are reviewed annually and revised periodically, and that essential drugs are available on a timely basis. Pharmacies are generally well supplied, although not all prescription medications are always available.
The most recent act relating to mental health in Grenada is the Mental Health Act (2008). There are 4.8 mental health outpatient facilities and 18.6 psychiatric beds in general hospitals per 100,000 people (2011).
