Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre, Public Hospitals Authority, is proud to announce the acceptance of Lady Joan Foulkes to serve as Patron of the “Pearls and Gems” Committee. She is joined by committee members Magistrate Carolyn Evans, Mrs. Freda Hamilton, Mrs. Brenda Forbes, Ms. Ruth Ferguson, Mrs. Ulease Ferguson, Mr. Roy Adams and Mr. Jeff St. John.

The overall purpose of the committee is to generate an interest in mental health, gerontology and addiction that will cause members of the community to:

• Respect mental health as a specialized medical condition that should be accessed without apprehension.

• Recognize that effective rehabilitation requires the active participation and support of the community.

• Work with our older adults to ensure that they are surrounded with surrogate family members who fulfill their social and emotional needs.

Lady Foulkes says that, “The time has come for the work done at Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre to assume its rightful place in the hearts of all Bahamians as together we promote community responsibility for our Aged, Mentally Challenged, and the Addict, through supporting the mental health, gerontology and rehabilitative programmes and services that repair and restore lives.”

Lady Foulkes’s first function in this role will be the official Launch of the Pearls and Gems project on Sunday, February 22, 2015. Plans to be announced. 

Pictured at the Press Conference Thursday announcing Lady Joan Foulkes as Patron of the “Pearls and Gems” Committee to represent the needs of persons in the Gerontology, Mental Health, Substance Abuse and Child and Adolescent programmes of Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre are from left: Medical Staff Coordinator Dr. Nelson Clarke, Patron Lady Joan Foulkes, and Acting Hospital Administrator Ruth Albury. (BIS Photo/Patrick Hanna)