BDF GERIATRIC
RESTORATION ASSISTANCE
GIS| Joy Springer 20 AUG 18
Photography credit: Lt M Jemmott
Members of the Barbados Defence Force (BDF) today began a five-month assignment at the Geriatric Hospital, Beckles Road, St. Michael, which will significantly upgrade the physical conditions for the 286 residents.
Hospital Manager, Heather Payne-Drakes, said that the BDF’s involvement in the project was facilitated by Minister of Health and Wellness, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Bostic, who is a former member of the BDF.
Mrs. Payne-Drakes welcomed “the fantastic partnership” between the hospital and the BDF, noting: “As you can see, the facility is quite dated. Right now we have some leakage, some windows that are out and some doors that are not functioning. We expect that at the end of the renovations the entire ambiance of the hospital will be transformed.
“We expect that it will be a lot more pleasant for the patients and staff; the colours will be changed and we will not have those environmental issues that accompany the deterioration of the plant,” she said.
Mrs. Payne-Drakes disclosed that to facilitate the work, some patients have had to be relocated to other sections of the hospital. She advised family and friends wishing to visit to contact the Nursing Administration Unit at 228-2597 so that they could be directed to the appropriate ward.
Major Lubin Maxwell, the BDF’s Building Rehabilitation Project Manager, is in charge of the work on site. He said his team of 18, including masons, plumbers, electricians, painters and general workers, was working with a team of artisans from the Ministry of Health and Wellness.
“The scope of work is to renovate and rehabilitate the wards, both internally and externally, with work on each block scheduled to last 20 weeks.”
Major Maxwell said that while the BDF officers would take a break to facilitate their involvement in the upcoming Remembrance Day and Independence Day Parades, the work will continue during that period with the artisans from the Ministry of Health and Wellness.
He said that the BDF officers were very appreciative of the contribution made to Barbados in the past by the elderly population and were honoured to be part of a project to improve their quality of life.
BDF personnel restoring the Geriatric Hospital.
Commodore (Cdre) Errington Ricardo Shurland was appointed Chief of Staff of the Barbados Defence Force (BDF) on 1 September 2021. He enlisted in the BDF in February 1984 and in a military career spanning over 34 years, has served in various operational and administrative appointments.
Colonel Glyne Grannum joined the Barbados Defence Force (BDF) on 18 October 1985 and underwent career development training at the Canadian Forces Officer Candidate School, Chilliwack and the Combat Training Centre, Gagetown New Brunswick, Canada. He subsequently attended the Infantry Training Centre and the Signal Wing in Warminster, UK (PCBC and RSO Courses respectively), the International Institute of Humanitarian Law in San Remo, Italy; the Lester Pearson Canadian Peacekeeping Centre, the Canadian Land Forces Command and Staff College, Kingston, the Canadian Forces Command and Staff College, Toronto, the National Defence University of the People’s Liberation Army People’s Republic of China and the Centre for Hemispheric Defence Studies, National Defence University, Washington. He also attended a Defence Resources Management programme at National Defence Headquarters, Ottawa, Canada. In addition to being a qualified infantry officer, Col Grannum is a qualified Regimental Signals Officer and a former Operations Officer and Finance Officer of the BDF.
Colonel Banfield joined the Barbados Battalion of the South Caribbean Force in 1941 having just left the Cadet Corps at Combermere School, and was granted a commission as a Second Lieutenant in 1942. He was a Platoon Commander and a Company Commander during the war and served in Barbados, Dominica (as part of the Gale Force), St Lucia and St Vincent.
Warrant Officer Class 1 Colin Marshall is a graduate of the St Michael, and was born on the 5 November 1969 and enlisted in the Barbados Defence Force on 16 August 1994. He was promoted to the rank of Lance Corporal in August 1997, Corporal in 1999, Sergeant in 2007, Color Sergeant in 2014, Warrant Officer Class Two in 2017 and Warrant Officer Class One in 2020. He was Most Outstanding Student on Junior Leadership Course in 1998, the Most Outstanding Student on Junior Non Commissioned Officer Cadre in Jamaica in 2000, best at Leadership on the Search Adviser Course in Jamaica in 2007 and the Most Outstanding Student on the Warrant Officer Course in Jamaica in 2015.
