Bahamas: Surgery Backlog At PMH

By Jones Bahamas
An increasing number of persons awaiting vital surgeries continue to be a mounting issue at the Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) and infrastructural issues at the facility do nothing to alleviate the situation.
President of the Doctor’s Union Dr. Charles Clarke, who has been vocal about the issues affecting clinics around the country in recent weeks said over 500 people are being affected.
“The situation with the air condition is due largely to outages caused by the inefficiencies of BPL,” he said.
“The Public Hospitals Authority has tried to address the issue by bringing in compressors but that’s a temporary fix. The problem is the patients are not getting care and not getting surgery but that’s not the full extent. We are also under capacity and do not have enough time to operate.”
Noted Physician and Leader of the Free National Movement (FNM), Dr. Hubert Minnis weighed in on the reports coming out of Princess Margaret Hospital that the operating rooms have been without air conditioning for two weeks.
Dr. Minnis took the opportunity to scold the government for not properly managing the facility.
“As a doctor and the former minister of health, I am appalled by the alarming reports coming from Princess Margaret Hospital that there has not been air conditioning in the operating rooms for two weeks. It is unacceptable that patients are being turned away from their scheduled procedures and told to go to Doctors Hospital. Princess Margaret Hospital serves those most in need, some who cannot afford health insurance,” he said in a statement.
“How can this government ignore the pleas of patients and doctors who have been crying out for help? A functioning hospital for the care of all Bahamians is a basic necessity, yet through the continued ineptitude of this PLP Government – many are being forced to go without.
“We are not a third world country. Bahamians have rights and expectations. The right to accessible healthcare and the expectation that it is quality care. They deserve nothing less, but this government is forcing them to delay needed surgery or spend additional funds at a private facility.
“Think of the people and families from all of the Family Islands that come to Princess Margaret Hospital seeking medical attention and good care only to be turned away because the conditions of the hospital are less than satisfactory. This is unconscionable and it is deplorable.”
Dr. Minnis said the PLP Government needs to focus on fixing this problem immediately and inform the public of what steps are being taken to alleviate the issue.
“Silence is not leadership. Ignoring a problem won’t make it go away,” he said.
“The FNM will continue to stand with the people and the patients being turned away until this matter is rectified. That’s what leaders do, and that is what this government should have done without having the people come together and force them to do their jobs.” (The Bahama Journal)