Barbados to build Ebola centre at lone hospital

By Caribbean Medical News Staff
After a short “dispute” between the Government of Barbados and the staffers of the St. Lucy District Hospital which involved union representatives of staffers meeting with Government on the issue, the Barbados Government will now build a specially constructed isolation and treatment centre specialising in handling chronic infectious disease at Enmore, St. Michael and not retrofit the district hospital for the elderly as was previously planned.
Enmore is not on the hospital compound itself but had been traditionally used as hospital accommodation for doctors.
Health Minister John Boyce made his announcement at a press conference with media heads at the Ministry of Health. The Minister said that the centre will be located in a refurbished building and would be ready by month end while the completion of all aspects of the centre’s outfitting will continue.
According to the Minister, the construction of the centre is an indication of Barbados’ readiness to confront and control the Ebola epidemic which has killed over 2500 people and sickened more than 4000 in various parts of West Africa with Liberia being the hardest hit. To date, two American doctors have been infected, treated and discharged and a UK nurse was also infected, treated and discharged in the US and UK respectively. They were infected in West Africa while treating infected patients there, flown home and treated with the experimental drug, ZMapp.
Boyce also indicated that the seaport, airport and marinas in the north of the island were also readied for any pre-screening of those who entered the country at the island’s ports. Dr. Margaret Chan, head of the World Health Organization has deemed Ebola “an international emergency” and has asked for 600 medical health workers and 10 000 beds from the international community.
Acting Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr Kenneth George said that the isolation centre was only part of a “four point plan” to address the issue of Ebola which is now the focus of attention in the world as it relates to medical crises of an infectious nature.
The others points in the plan include training of private and public sector stakeholders to ensure that adequate quarantine centres are established at the ports of entry and the identification of highly-skilled staff to man those quarantine centres. Public education and awareness will continue through the Ministry of Health’s education programme on Ebola.
The Acting Chief Medical Officer and Minister also indicated that the Ministry was conducting simulation exercises as part of readiness in the future.