After months of delays, the new $100 million Critical Care Block at Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) was commissioned yesterday.

During a grand ceremony at the new entrance of the facility, several officials said the commissioning marked the beginning of a new era for the country's oldest hospital. It has been more than a year since it was originally scheduled for completion. The Ingraham administration broke ground on the project in November 2011. It was expected to be completed no later than June 2013.

During his remarks, Prime Minister Perry Christie acknowledged the presence of former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham, who sat in the front row.

"I remember in 2007 when I went to a particular opening and the Right Honourable Hubert Ingraham saw me in the audience," Christie said. "He figured I was still a little pained. So, he looks at me and he says, 'Christie, some of us sow and others of us reap.'

"Former prime minister, it is with the greatest of pleasures that I look at you, acknowledge your presence, thank you for your presence, and say to you, this is an extension of the democracy you and I have both served."

Christie's statement was met with a round of applause. He called the Critical Care Block the single largest financial investment in the public health system in The Bahamas since the construction of PMH over 60 years ago.

"We are therefore looking at a one shot investment of close to $100 million," the prime minister said. "As I alluded, we have to believe and see that this money was well spent for a number of reasons."

During the months leading up to yesterday's commissioning the project has been rife with challenges, including a lack of funding for essential technology. The facility obtained a $35 million loan from CIBC FirstCaribbean International Bank for equipment and furniture late last year.

"I believe this compares, from the point of view of the physical edifice, with anything built in The United States of America; I think so," said Christie to another round of applause. And it is a reminder of how far we have come in terms of the level and quality of health care that is available in our public institutions. It comes at a cost. But in terms of the benefit and the quality of care, which this facility will provide, I believe this will far outweigh the cost."

Minister of Health Dr. Perry Gomez said as staff move into the new state-of-the-art facility, it is imperative not to lose focus on the quality of care that will be provided.

"As we move into our new critical care unit - despite the wonderful buildings we have and the wonder accommodations we have - it is so important that the quality of care delivered is of the same standard," he said. "By using the quote from the 19th Century physician Sir. William Osler... 'The best care you can give a patient is to first care for that patient.'"

The facility boasts a new Central Sterile Department, 18 recovery beds and 20 private Intensive Care Unit rooms. It also has 48 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit beds, new laboratory facilities and a main entry that is accessible to the disabled.

The People's Republic of China recently donated more than $570,00 worth of new state-of-the-art medical equipment and supplies to the hospital. Chinese Ambassador to The Bahamas Yuan Guisen, Governor General Dame Marguerite Pindling, several Cabinet ministers and Opposition Leader Dr. Hubert Minnis were also in attendance.

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