Deputy CEO Comments on Bermuda Hospitals Board Next Steps

Bermuda Hospitals Board (BHB), Deputy CEO, Venetta Symonds, comments today on BHB’s next steps:

“We have listened closely to the community since the announcement of the new acute hospital site. This is one of the most important projects Bermuda faces and we do not want this to be used for political or personal capital. We need a solution that will unite us.

“We understand the community wants to have more detailed information on both sites. As we had previously stated, our next steps were to undertake detailed analysis and site investigation on the Botanical Gardens. Following the Premier´s statement at the Sustainable Development Forum on Tuesday 19 September, we will now undertake these studies for both the same site and Botanical Gardens and include the community in this process. As these next steps for both sites will be undertaken in parallel, we do not expect there to be a significant delay to the overall process.

“The public meetings held last week in many ways are the first steps in this process. We are very thankful to the people who came and spoke honestly and passionately about their concerns.

“We want to make the best decision for healthcare in this country. We do not have a second hospital as back up and we cannot lose focus that King Edward is nearing the end of its life. The critical state of the hospital has not changed. The time constraints have not changed, nor the issue of making this affordable for our country.

“The importance of this project to Bermuda means we have to progress. Beyond all else, we cannot falter. We are responding quickly so that we can progress and move forward together as a community.

“Our next steps include more detailed analysis, surveys, consultation and research on both the KEMH and Botanical Gardens sites that will take some time to complete. Our goal is to engage the entire community as we work towards providing a full report and comparative analysis of both sites. Our first step is to ensure we establish a robust and transparent process for the further consultation and analysis. We will therefore update the community on the process within the next eight weeks.

“A benefit today compared to last year is that we have the community´s attention. We hope people will stay interested and stay involved as we advance.”

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