AFTER losing their matriarch to kidney failure, distraught loved ones have complained about the “substandard” dialysis services at Princess Margaret Hospital.
In an interview with The Tribune, a family member, who wished to remain anonymous, described in detail the “horrors” his relative experienced at the Princess Margaret because of the “lack of beds, lack of porters and lack of medicine.” The claims come two months after Health Minister Dr Duane Sands said the hospital is continuing to have significant challenges with overcrowding and a shortage of beds.
At the time, Dr Sands said the situation is “embarrassing” and it is sad people have to stay in the hallways for up to “three to four days” because “there is just nowhere to put them”.
He said the problem will require deliberate structural change, which will not happen in the short-term.
“My relative was 66 and was diagnosed with kidney failure,” the relative told The Tribune.
“When she was admitted to PMH in August, there were no beds so she was placed on a gurney and put in the hallway of the ward.”
“Eventually we were told that someone had passed and so she was able to be placed on the bed but because she had diabetes her kidneys had failed and she went on dialysis. There were times when she needed to be taken to dialysis but she could not be taken down because there were no porters available, or if there was a porter the machines in dialysis were inoperable.
“At one point,” said her family member, “her body took infection because she wasn’t able to go to dialysis and she needed medications for the infection, but PMH didn’t have the medication and we had to source the medication from Doctors Hospital for around $7,000.
“The staff at the hospital were very relaxed about the entire situation like they were accustomed to working in these terrible conditions. They don’t have sufficient staff capable of caring for persons on dialysis and the nurses don’t want to assist the porters,” the relative added, “if there is not a porter the patient won’t go down. This is not just my personal cry, others have the same cries,” he said.
He also said the nurses in the dialysis unit are overworked and frustrated, adding that if something “doesn’t happen very soon” more people will die from lack of resources.
“My family is still seeking questions from the coroners about what really had happened,” he said.
“Yes, she was on dialysis and had diabetes but sometimes if the family didn’t personally go and take her down, or knew a porter, she never went down into the dialysis unit.”
“The Public Hospital Authority,” he said, “must address the situation in the hospital. The dialysis unit is in need of enhancement and it costs lives because the machines and the people that are frustrated in that unit.”
In August, Dr Sands said in order to resolve the problems at the hospital, health officials have to complete the renovations at PMH, increase the hospital’s capacity, get patients in and out faster and take non-essential services out of PMH.
In July, the Accident and Emergency Department at PMH experienced a series of challenges, forcing the hospital to relocate some patients to the South Beach Clinic and having other patients wait for more than 24 hours .
At the time, Dr Sands said that the “perfect storm” was caused by years of “dumb and inappropriate decisions”. He was referring to political decisions. “Honestly,” he added, “I am not sure when a solution to the “mess” will be found.
Calls placed to officials at PMH and the Public Hospitals Authority were unreturned up to press time.
Comments
Cainn 7 years, 1 month ago
"Honestly,” he added, “I am not sure when a solution to the “mess” will be found."
Uhmmm... You should've been honest before being elected. Sad to watch a politician less than a year in give up on the people he swore to serve.
TheMadHatter 7 years, 1 month ago
Very sad. There are so many things I would like to say here of a political nature - but this is a personal article about a particular family - so I only offer my heartfelt sadness for their loss.
TalRussell 7 years, 1 month ago
Comrades! Well, when it comes to the patient care dump, called PMH - where they still does cold storage the bodies of peoples families and loved ones - out in parking lot freezers!
If it]ll make you feels better - this is nothing new at PMH!
I does recall back in the early Pindling days - when a 'Million Dollars' was spent on fish, or supposedly so......... But a survey was conducted with staff and patients of PMH, and not a single person - could recall ever having been served fish of any kinds - during that period of time.
Back then a Million Dollars was equal to a Zillion Dollars of missing money that never went into delivering patient care - nor was it ever accounted for.
Amen!
Sickened 7 years, 1 month ago
Parking lot freezers? For real? Are they by the emergency room entrance? That is very disturbing.
TalRussell 7 years, 1 month ago
Comrade Sickened, suppliers delivering products to PMH requiring they be delivered in refrigerated vehicles, are afraid leave their freezer doors unlocked - or so I'm told? Ain't no telling what might be stuffed inside them freezers - during their drivers absence?
Well_mudda_take_sic 7 years, 1 month ago
Minnis accomplished very little while he was Minister of Health under the last Ingraham administration and the same will apparently be true of Sands under the current Minnis administration. The hospitals and clinics in our public healthcare system are well known to be 'killing fields' and will remain as such until we have the right kind of caring physicians in leadership positions in both our government and the medical profession.
One cannot begin to imagine the dismal state our Public Hospital Authority must be in after being under the Chairmanship of Sir Snake's corrupt son-in-law, Frank Smith, for several years.
And while our current government readily admits it is unable to deal with the daily critical healthcare needs of our own people, Minnis and Sands are nevertheless all too eager to round-up and send a team of so called 'volunteer' healthcare professionals to Dominica, as if we have an abundance of such individuals in our midst. Simply unbelievable!
Reality_Check 7 years, 1 month ago
It is indeed most frightening to think that Minnis accomplished so little for our public healthcare system while he was our Minister of Health yet he somehow thinks he can now accomplish so much as our Prime Minister. Truly a scary thought!
bogart 7 years, 1 month ago
Bizzare. A Doctor who has spent a lifetime and years walking past or through the hospital anD after all the decades? Of seeing this. BAHAMIAN CITIZENS WHOSE FOREFATHERS HASE SWEATED AND SACRIFICED AND SUFFERED THE INDIGINITIES TO BUILD THIS NATION THE ONLY BELOVED BAHAMALAND SHOULD HAVE THEIR DECENDANTS SUFFER THIS. STOP THE FREENESS TO ALL DAMN FOREIGNERS WHO RUN AWAY FROM SOLVING THEIR OWN COUNTRYS PROBLEMS WITH THEIR TAILS BETWEEN THEIR LEGS AND SUCK UP THE SLACKNESS THAT EXISTS AND THEN WANT TO TALK BACK TO YOU IN CREOLE ETC. ONE SIDE OF THE HOSPITAT THEY GETTING BORN AND THE OTHER SIDE BSHAMIANS SUFFERING. NO INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION IN THE WORLD SHOUL,D SAY THAT YOU HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF OUTSIDERS AT THE EXPRNSE OF DEPRIVING YOUR OWN. NONSENSE. ADMINISTRATORS OR DOCTORS WHO WANT TO PRESERVE LIVES OF THOSE WHO NEED TO BE HANGED AND COST THE COUNTRY MILLIONS TO FEED AND CARE GOR MURDERERD WHO HAVE A PRISON BED TO SLEEP ON SHOULD BE APPALLED AT THE CONTRADICTION. 19,000 DOLLARS TO KEEP A MURDERER AT FOXHILL PER YEAR AND HAVE INSTANT ATTENTION MEDICAL CARE ETC DOES NOT COMPUTE.
tell_it_like_it_is 7 years, 1 month ago
Oh nooo.... I can't accept Duane Sands' incompetence. One would think he just became responsible for this portfolio without being a doctor for many years. How long have you worked as a doctor, how many problems did you see then? Did you never think EVER in ANY of that time, boy if it was up to me I would change this or that - to make things better.
Or were you just in the health system to get a salary. I am so sick and tired of this minister's excuses. Yes prior administrations did crap, but it's your turn now. WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO? Not EVERYTHING is a long-term solution. I am SURE there are things that can be done NOW, to at least help alleviate some of the horrible experiences of patients at PMH. Or do you just not care? Will you just bide your time, do NOTHING and see how long you can get by with blaming the previous administration. Oh my gosh, there is no Minister in any other Ministry that I see blame past failures as much as this guy. I think ALL other ministers will do a better job. Even D'Aguilar is looking like a genius compared to him.
It's really sad! My heart goes out to the families of the patients who needlessly die at PMH!
ThisIsOurs 7 years, 1 month ago
Dr Sands is not incompetent. D'Aguilar can't hold a candle to him. But it would be great if someone could stand up in the house and give a DETAILED plan for what they will accomplish in 6 months, 1 year, 2years and 5 years and give the long term goal and how many years it will take.
ThisIsOurs 7 years, 1 month ago
I was once told that if the rate of child deaths were as high as the rate of elder deaths the country would be up in arms. The general public simple assumes "they old, it was their time.."
New prison, new hospital in the south, not on swamp land, good traffic flow to hospital.
Emac 7 years, 1 month ago
Awesome ideas!
Sickened 7 years, 1 month ago
A new hospital in the south is VERY needed.
The_Oracle 7 years, 1 month ago
Sure it can be fixed. Throw a billion $$ at it, fire incompetent staff INCLUDING those in administration who fit that bill. Put healthcare at two arms lengths from Government and political interference. 50 years of dismantling structure and rules, ethics and proficiency is not easy to correct without serious hard decisions being made if one wants to fix it. Any of you really want the Government to supply your health care? (and with tax payer money as well)
TalRussell 7 years, 1 month ago
Comrades! Front and center - one by one the new red shirts ministers have expressed complete shock at the magnitude of how fucke@ up are the ministries they have been charged with running..... But given their long medical backgrounds around PMH, neither Minnis, or Dr. Duane, can say with any sincerity that they couldn't have possibly known howfucke@ up is PMH. Some could say, them two helped with creating the fuckin@ing up at PMH?
{ No needs make this PMH stuff up, now is there? }
ThisIsOurs 7 years, 1 month ago
What's the "@" symbol for? Lol
guavaduff22 7 years, 1 month ago
Well in my humble opinion, PMH is in dire need of leadership starting with the Hospital Administrator and her clique of managers who sit around the round table! There is a lack of empathy as it relates to patient care, the only concern they all interest themselves with, is the mighty dollar bill and how they can enrich their own pockets and day to day lives. Sadly, there is no heart or empathy for the most part within PMH. If the Executives have more meetings about improving patient care instead of creating committees and sub-committees to funnel governmental funds to their cronies which equates to massive kick-backs for themselves, that would be a great start to plugging a hole in a the huge crater which exists! The executive Mgmt team of PMH is a disgrace and needs to be weeded out immediately!
guavaduff22 7 years, 1 month ago
guavaduff22 says... Well in my humble opinion, PMH is in dire need of leadership starting with the Hospital Administrator and her clique of managers who sit around the round table! There is a lack of empathy as it relates to patient care, the only concern they all interest themselves with, is the mighty dollar bill and how they can enrich their own pockets and day to day lives. Sadly, there is no heart or empathy for the most part within PMH. If the Executives have more meetings about improving patient care instead of creating committees and sub-committees to funnel governmental funds to their cronies which equates to massive kick-backs for themselves, that would be a great start to plugging a hole in a the huge crater which exists! The executive Mgmt team of PMH is a disgrace and needs to be weeded out immediately!
bogart 7 years, 1 month ago
Actually I understand when the PMH or some section was opened back in the 60s the new govt vowed on expansion as back then they considered it too small. And accordingly they purchased the adkojning land being the Collins House. Former PM Ingrahan wanted to build a new city on portion of the vast some 3000 acres in South Beach but there was some glaw with the title or exchange with the owners estate did not go through. I cannot remember who was the thrn Health Minister. It does mot matter who is a perfect doctor because this overcrowded hospital must first halt the illegal migrant by putting them in Court first and not a free plane ride back.Send the ambassador back if he is not doing better.to stop the flow. A funny one would bs the doctors all standing with the politicians in the tent by the big tree by Sassoon House to break ground for a 20 bed wing years ago and none said anything that money also needes d to put the equipment and furnishings. Some 65m was borrowed fron RBC AND WITHIN HOURS THE LOAN WAS APPROVED. TO PM ingraham govt. Llike the plans to reorganize Emergency but its the gun shot victims with police escorts who keep coming in and jumping the line.
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