SERHA upgrades hospital phone network with VoIP rollout

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The South East Regional Health Authority (SERHA) says it has put a modern Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephone network into service at several of its main health and office locations.

The system is now operating at Kingston Public Hospital, Victoria Jubilee Hospital, and SERHA’s regional and corporate offices in New Kingston. The authority says the change gives staff a stronger communications platform for both patient-care services and administrative work.

In a statement, SERHA described the investment as another step in its programme to upgrade infrastructure and equip health workers with the systems needed to serve the public in a timely and effective way.

The internet-based phone network replaces older telephone equipment and is designed to improve call clarity, strengthen reliability and make communication between departments and facilities easier. SERHA says those improvements are especially important in emergency settings and busy clinical areas, where quick sharing of information can affect patient care.

The authority also expects the VoIP system to reduce disruptions often linked to conventional phone networks. It says the upgrade should produce savings over time by improving operations, making better use of resources and cutting maintenance costs.

SERHA says the next stage will extend the system to Bustamante Hospital for Children, Spanish Town Hospital and National Chest Hospital, further widening its digital communications network.