By Elesha George
It boasts a workforce of almost 500 and a medical staff of more than 200, but the quality of the service offered at the emergency room at Mount St John’s Medical Centre (MSJMC) leaves much to be desired.
This is according to some residents who recently sought emergency medical care at the facility.
On Sunday, a number of people who visited the hospital told OBSERVER media that they waited for many hours without receiving medical attention. They added that the lack of communication between health care workers and patients was also very obvious.
Among them were several parents with sick children who, after waiting for between six to 10 hours eventually left the facility without receiving any care.
One such dissatisfied customer was Nicky Bedminster, who described MSJMC as a “travesty”, and said it was not designed to save lives.
“We were there for hours; nobody in front of the waiting room, people were just getting frustrated and making noise because it’s such a long process,” she said.
Bedminster was accompanying her six-year-old asthmatic granddaughter who was wheezing at the time and was also suffering with diarrhea and vomiting.
She admitted that upon their arrival at MSJMC, her granddaughter promptly underwent a routine checkup to ensure that her lungs were clear. She said they were then instructed to sit in the waiting room, so that the child could be monitored.
But Bedminster told OBSERVER media that three hours later, her granddaughter’s illness persisted but she had not received any further medical attention.
The frustrated grandmother said, “She was vomiting steadily and not one nurse or doctor said anything to anybody.”
According to the woman, it seemed as if only one doctor was on duty that night, and another had to be called in because of the influx of patients.
“You can imagine the chaos on the inside and the outside with only two doctors working — so many emergencies,” she said.
Bedminster said that after being there for more than six hours, with no idea what was going to happen, she decided that she had no choice but to leave. She subsequently sought the assistance of a pharmacist who recommended medication for her granddaughter.
Sadly, Bedminster was not the only visitor who felt the urge to leave, as three other families walked out just ahead of her. (The Daily Observer)
