Medical Conference Targets Belize’s Healthcare Gaps

Healthcare is evolving rapidly, but for many Belizeans, the biggest challenge remains gaining access to basic and specialized care. That reality took center stage at a three-day international medical conference in Belize City, where local and overseas professionals are exploring how innovation, stronger partnerships and homegrown expertise can help close the gaps in Belize’s healthcare system. Here’s Britney Gordon with the following story.

 

Britney Gordon, Reporting

Where you live and what you earn can determine the healthcare you receive. This week, more than two hundred local and international medical professionals are meeting in Belize to find practical ways to close those gaps. The Resilient Futures Conference is exploring everything from artificial intelligence and disease prevention to specialized care. Health Minister Kevin Bernard says Belize must invest in modern facilities, better equipment and new technology.

 

Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health and Wellness

“There’s emerging technologies, new technologies that are in terms of advances in health, and that’s why the theme in terms of resilience, I think that when you talk about building resilient health systems, there’s a lot of pieces of that puzzle that have to be put in place. And that includes modern infrastructure, better equipment. And these things sometimes do cost. And so it also focuses on how Belizeans can access better care. And as a government and as a ministry, of course, I felt that we had to be here to offer that support.”

 

But the conference is not only focused on new technology. Organizers also want to inspire more Belizeans to enter the medical field and ensure that those already working on the front lines receive greater support and recognition. After serving nearly five hundred patients at a two-day clinic, Monarchy Consulting Group organized the conference to keep that momentum going. CEO Monica Betson Montgomery says Belize needs more homegrown healthcare professionals and greater recognition for those already serving the country.

 

Monica Betson Montgomery, CEO, Monarchy Consulting Group

“We would hope that for students that are here, that they would be hungry to go to higher levels of education and we can have more homegrown healthcare providers. And for the doctors, for them to receive support for all that they’re doing, because there’s a lot of work being done here in Belize, and I don’t think our local doctors get enough credit for what they are doing.”

 

Specialized care remains out of reach for many Belizeans, especially in rural communities. Gaps persist in cancer treatment, mental health, women’s healthcare and medical research. Ophthalmologist Dr. Windell Murphy says eye care offers a clear example of the challenge. With only a limited number of specialists and facilities serving the population, he says income, education and location can determine who receives care.

 

Dr. Windell Murphy, Ophthalmologist

“Access is a big deal. In Belize, it’s especially a big deal. There are groups like the BCVI that do a tremendous job, and there are local ophthalmologists that do a great job. But there’s four hundred and thirty thousand, four hundred Belizeans in this country, in this locale. And if you have ten, fifteen ophthalmologists and five or six or seven establishments to take care of that, that’s a huge challenge. And the issue, as the minister pointed out, of accessibility, inequity in providing that care, I want to say that if you can afford it, if you have a certain educational level, you tend to have more access to it than people who, in the villages, out in the community.”

 

The discussions are also challenging the traditional separation between dental and general medical care. Dr. Osbert Usher says preventative dentistry must become a larger part of the national healthcare conversation because oral health directly affects a person’s overall well-being.

 

Dr. Osbert Usher, Founder, Magazine Dental Academy

“It has long, long been relegated that dentistry steers apart from general medical health. But oral health is very, very important, as it pertains to general health. And this is where I want to ensure that the dentistry, especially preventative aspect of dentistry, is taken into consideration as it impacts generally in the wellbeing of the entire population.”

 

From artificial intelligence and medical research to cancer care, mental health and dentistry, the conference is putting Belize’s most persistent healthcare challenges under one roof. Organizers hope the three days of discussion will lead to stronger partnerships and practical solutions that make quality care more accessible, particularly for Belizeans in underserved and rural communities. Britney Gordon for News Five.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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