Their Excellencies the Most Honourable Sir Patrick Allen and the Most Honourable Lady Allen today (December 5), paid a special visit to the Percy Junor Hospital in Manchester, as part of their Annual Hospital Tour which takes place in December each year.
However, it was somewhat more than just a regular visit as hospital records indicate that Sir Patrick Allen is the second Head of State to have visit the hospital in over sixty-eight years years.
In his address, following the tour, the Governor-General said that it was heartwarming to know that sixty-eight years after it was first commissioned into service, the hospital was still meeting the health care needs of the people in a clean, healthy and pleasant environment. That was the vision of the late Percival Sigismund Junor who gave the facility as a gift to the people of Manchester.
The Governor-General said that their visit to the hospital has been a long time in coming. He explained that the annual hospital tour was designed to bring cheer to patients and uplift their spirits as they convalesced away from home at Christmas.
“We also use the occasion to commend members of the hospital staff who are themselves away from home, family and friends during the festive season, for their role in ensuring that patients can recuperate in comfort and with dignity. We consider it a privilege to be able to show our care and concern, and even more so to be able to partner with various organizations to bring cheer during the festive season,” said The Governor-General.
He said that the hospital has also forged a number of valuable partnerships which have resulted in the donation of medical equipment among other developments.
The Governor-General’s tour has led to yet another fruitful partnership as the Negril Hospital and Courts Jamaica Limited both came on-board and donated generously to the hospital.
Sir Patrick Allen said that: “Today, we are especially grateful to Negril International Hospital’s Chairman Mr. Winston Wellington and to Mr. Dennis Harris, Chief Executive Officer of Courts Jamaica, for their generous contribution of well needed equipment to the Percy Junor 
Hospital. Courts’ donation, valued at approximately $1.3 million, included two Blood Pressure Machines, a Pulse Oximeter, a Coagulator and a Feotal Edan Monitor. Negril International Hospital’s contributed surgical pillows, suction pumps and Occulsion Clamps. These gifts were presented to the hospital by representatives of the two companies.
To mark their visit to the Percy Junor Hospital, His Excellency presented a plaque to the institution, symbolizing their appreciation for the important service that it provides to the region.
The Hon. Richard Azan, Member of Parliament and Minister of State in the Ministry of Transport, Works and Housing, Mr. Audley Shaw, Member of Parliament for North East Manchester, Hon. Sally Porteous, Custos Rotulorum for the parish of Manchester, and Her Worship the Mayor of Mandeville, Councillor Brenda Ramsay were among the guests who accompanied the Governor-General and Lady Allen on the hospital tour.
