Expenditure on health per capita in 2014 was $1,014, 7.5% of GDP. The country has above the average ratio of health care professionals to population. All Barbadian citizens are covered by
Universal health care. Barbados has eight
polyclinics throughout the country, 5 Geriatric hospitals for care of the elderly, and a network of Child Care facilities, in addition to the main
Queen Elizabeth Hospital (General Hospital) located in Bridgetown. There are private medical clinics, including the Sandy Crest Medical Centre on the west coast, and the FMH Emergency Medical Clinic, just outside
Bridgetown. The
Barbados Psychiatric Hospital is located in Black Rock,
Bridgetown. The
Ministry of Health & Wellness also operates the
Barbados Drug Service which provides a pharmacy service for the island. In 2011, the Government of Barbados signed a
memorandum of understanding to lease its Saint Joseph Hospital site to the Denver, Colorado-based America World Clinics (now Traverse Global Healthcare). Under the deal, the group will use Barbados as one of its main destinations for
medical tourism at that facility. The government also announced it would begin constructing a new $900 million state-of-the-art hospital to replace the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. ==See also==