The Project for Strengthening Medical Imaging System in Belize, implemented by the International Cooperation and Development Fund (TaiwanICDF) in collaboration with Far Eastern Memorial Hospital in Taiwan, and the Ministry of Health in Belize officially kicked off in November this year. The project aims to strengthen the capacity of medical imaging services in Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH) as well as the Western and Northern regional hospitals of Belize.
Although the public regional hospitals and KHMH are equipped with X-ray and ultrasound equipment, they are the conventional type that requires dark room for photographic processing and space for storing imaging records of patients. Furthermore, though KHMH has high-tech digital medical imaging equipment, there is no system for storing and transmitting the digital medical images to other hospitals, which increases the time and cost of medical imaging services. In addition, there are only two radiology specialists in the public health facilities, and the knowledge and skills of the radiographers and assistant radiographers are in urgent need of improvement.
The project will therefore assist to strengthen the capacity of digital medical imaging in three public hospitals in Belize, and improve the skills and knowledge of health personnel in the operation of medical imaging equipment and interpretation of medical images. Moreover, the project will conduct a three-year foreign doctor radiology residency training course for two Belizean physicians which is scheduled to start in December this year. Following completion of the course and final assessment, the physicians will receive radiologist certification from the Medical Council in Belize. This marks the first time the TaiwanICDF assists a partner country to train qualified specialists.
TaiwanICDF has long served as a platform for international cooperation and actively cooperates with the public and private sectors on various topics, including maternal and infant health care, chronic disease prevention, and health information and management system. The TaiwanICDF will continue to use the professional resources from Taiwan’s medical institutions to plan and implement public health and medicine projects in our partner countries, thereby assisting them to strengthen their medical care and public health system.