Food shortage at NA Hospital sparks protest

The New Amsterdam Hospital

After a food shortage at the New Amsterdam Hospital sparked a picketing exercise, regional officials yesterday said that the situation was blown out of proportion and accused opposition activists of trying to make the administration look bad.

The demonstration was also driven by reports that a female patient, who was admitted, went into diabetic shock as a result of not receiving meals and subsequently died. Chief Executive Officer of the Berbice Regional Health Authority (BRHA) Dr. Vishwa Mahadeo, however, refuted the reports, while noting that the patient was in a comatose state for more than two days and could not have eaten food. “She was having infusions and all the necessary medications intravenously,” he said at a news conference called yesterday to address the situation.

Human rights activists, concerned members of the public and APNU+AFC supporters, after confirming with staffers attached to the hospital’s kitchen that there was a shortage of food supplies, picketed the hospital on Wednesday, while demanding both the