APNU councillor, Shurla Scott on Thursday reported to the Region Six council that there is a shortage of doctors, nurses and even medication at the Skeldon Public Hospital after having a first-hand experience at the facility.
At the statutory meeting of the Regional Democratic Council, Scott stated that her first-hand experience at the hospital was not a pleasant one after she visited a patient at the hospital.
“The first thing I noticed is that there was no medical supervision there in the night at Skeldon Hospital… I remember standing here enquiring about Skeldon Hospital as it relates to staffing and this council was informed that there was enough staffing at Skeldon Hospital especially with the doctors”, she related.
Scott said, that she was present at the hospital for four days for visiting hours, “And I saw two Guyanese doctors for those four days consecutively and two Cuban doctors… The very patient was prepped to be transferred because there was no supervision.”
According to Scott, there was also a recommendation in the patient’s chart to have an ultrasound done but it was day four and this had still not been carried out.
She said that on enquiring with the sister in charge at the hospital she was told that she was “frustrated because nothing is being done, all of the reports that is coming from Skeldon to the region is falling on deaf ears…Shortages of staff, nurses, shortages of doctors, medication… And for that very patient was expected to have medication at 6 am, I was there, and the patient received her medication until 9 am because I intervened that patient was transferred.”
Scott said although the patient was prepped and awaiting transfer this was done only four hours later despite the ambulance being present at the institution.
“When I enquired why I was told the doctor was on lunch, I was told the doctor has to eat, of course I agree with that but this is one doctor that has been working since the morning… I was told that the Cuban doctors have limited medical functioning because there are certain things they can’t do… They can’t send charts, they can’t write up X, they can’t do Y”, she said.
Scott said that she was finally able to meet with the doctor responsible for the patient around 2:30 pm. He “was literally walking around with a resignation so I proceeded to speak to the doctor as well, it was the very thing I received from the sister in charge… Nurses are not around, no nurses in the night, ten-day (part-time) workers are supervising wards, there is one nurse running the emergency female and the male wards, that is the reality on the ground Chair.”
The Regional Councillor questioned how a hospital that services such a large area can be “run” in such a manner. Scott said that it was relayed to her by staff that they were told by those at the regional authority that the doctors at the location are “enough.”
All levels
“Those are the reports coming from the ground Chairman and these reports are coming from all levels.”
Additionally, Scott said that she made efforts to speak to the doctor in charge at the institution, however, that person was on leave and she was told that the doctor responsible for supervising the health centres “was asked to cover Skeldon.”
“All the reports and frustrations are falling on deaf ears… Nothing is being done, there is a cry from all levels Chairman and I am asking this council that it is time that we intervene at Skeldon…”, she declared.
Scott stressed that “there is no politics in health” and as such every effort must be made to improve the regional hospitals. She pointed out that the same issue was raised several months ago at the level of the RDC and they were told that there is enough staffing by the Regional Health Officer, Dr. Vishalya Sharma. “They are reporting inaccurately…”, Scott asserted.
Better role
Meanwhile, a 22-year-old paralyzed girl died this week after suffering a heart attack, and relatives believe that the New Amsterdam Hospital could have a played better role in offering care to the young woman when she and her mother visited on Saturday morning.
Shameeza Khan of Lot 7 West Canefield, East Canje Berbice, the aunt of the deceased Farzana Khan, 22, said that on Saturday around 9 a.m. she took Farzana to the hospital after she began feeling ill.
Shameeza who has taken care of her paralyzed niece for the last decade, said, “She take in Saturday and I took her to the New Amsterdam Hospital and when we went there, there was no doctors at the outpatient and we had to wait for over two hours.”
According to the woman, although it was an “emergency” they had to wait their turn to meet with a doctor. “There was no doctor working at the outpatient, a doctor from emergency come out and end up see us”, she related.
However, after they were able to meet with a doctor several tests were ordered for Farzana who at that time had a heartbeat of 151. “When we walk go the lab it was open but the guy there turn us back and said come back Monday.”
She continued, “He come out and I show him the paper and he ask me if she was getting pain and I said yes and he say he can’t do the test now let I come back Monday morning.”
Shameeza said that on Sunday evening Farzana fell into a coma-like state after which she was rushed to the New Amsterdam Public Hospital where she succumbed.
A post-mortem examination revealed that the young lady died from a heart attack.
Stabroek News was told that a team from the Ministry of Health has launched an investigation into the matter.
Scott on Thursday told the RDC that relatives of another individual reported to her that on Saturday they too had visited the New Amsterdam Public Hospital “and didn’t get no attention crying out for heavy chest pain, this is a second case, the very day however when a call was made to the RHO five minutes after the very patient was attended to.”
Stabroek News was also told of this situation and that the patient would have visited the institution had their pressure tested and was only able to meet with a doctor two hours later despite there not being a long line of persons. However, it was only after the relatives made contact with the Regional Health Officer that the patient was attended too, as such Scott questioned, “Should patients in Region Six keep calling the RHO? Because that is the only thing that made the difference from this patient being attended to to every other case across the region.”
