Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital Case Study

Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital is the main public hospital in Belize City, Belize. It functions as both the national referral hospital, and the district hospital for Belize District. It is publicly owned and operated, and is the main hospital in the Belize District. KHMH was formally incorporated as a statutory authority by way of the KHMH Act of 2000, which designated it as the country’s national referral hospital. Today, KHMH is the country’s leading hospital providing tertiary care for the entire country and serving as the secondary care hospital for the Central Health Region. The hospital receives major funding from the Ministry of Health and is administered by a Board of Governors.

KHMH has a bed capacity of 134 beds, three surgical suits

• Anesthesiology- An ear, nose and throat specialist trained in the medical and surgical treatment of the ears, nose throat, and related structures of the head and neck.

• Cardiology Services/ Heart care- they have a cardiologist on staff that is capable of treating heart problems while staying aware of other conditions including high blood pressure, high cholesterol and other factors that are a risk to the heart. It is a specialization amongst physicians. Cardiology is the discipline that researches, diagnoses and treats heart injuries and diseases as well as their causes.

• Dialysis- The dialysis unit has a capacity to dialyze up to eight cases per day with five functioning haemodialysis machines and two additional stand-by machines. The unit is operational from 8 am to 5 pm for 52 weeks per

These services are operational 24 hours a day for 52 weeks.

• Neurological Services- Neurology is the medical specialty which focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and disorders of the brain and nervous system.

• Obstetrics & Gynecology- Gynecology clinics are held on Monday’s, Wednesday’s and Friday’s. Cases seen at KHMH are not limited to ovarian cyst, irregular bleeding, fibroids, and cancer. Pap smears are not conducted at KHMH; however, they are assessed by the specialists. The colposcopy equipment at KHMH enables the observation and study of living tissue within the cervix and vaginal areas.

• Orthopedics- Orthopedics is the medical specialty focusing on the diagnosis, treatment, and repair of bones, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and joints. This includes broken bones, torn ligaments, and some spinal injuries.

• Paediatrics- Paediatric service KHMH has three specialists attached to the unit. The paediatricians conduct rounds for inpatients at approximately 8:00am and may conclude two hours later depending on the patient census and individual cases. All HIV national paediatric cases also come to the attention of KHMH