The Tribune

By DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

THE Rand Memorial Hospital has yet to fully recover from the loss of physicians and nurses in specialty areas and hospital equipment.

Dr Freeman Lockhart, Medical Chief of Staff, is experiencing a huge challenge finding necessary physicians for key positions at the Rand.

He also noted that not much improvement was achieved at the health care facility in terms of increased bed capacity after major storm renovations.

Dr Lockhart’s remarks came while addressing members of the Rotary Club of Grand Bahama via Zoom. He was the guest speaker at a bi-monthly meeting on November 20 when he gave an update on the Rand Memorial Hospital and COVID-19.

He indicated that they experienced significant losses of key nursing and medical staff after Dorian.

“We lost quite a few nurses and physicians, some with subspecialty skills, which could not practice medicine, said Dr Lockhart.

The Rand, he said, lost a Retinal Specialist who had joined the medical staff in the early part of 2019.

“He was eager to get started, and Dorian came along and wiped out a lot of the equipment we had. He was unable to practice and got frustrated and left. Those are the kinds of issues, from a Human Resources perspective, we were faced and challenged with, and we have yet to recover right up to today,” said Dr Lockhart.

The hospital official said the state of the economy in Grand Bahama has not made his job easy.

“(The economy) is still struggling now and trying to attract talent here in GB is a huge challenge. It is a challenge to find the necessary physicians for which I am tasked as the Medical Chief of Staff at the Rand.”

“I am not talking about persons from abroad; these are Bahamians I am talking about from Nassau. Trying to attract someone such as a resident physician to provide service is extremely difficult, given the present economic environment here."

“So, more than likely, very little is going to change in the services we offer and provide until we start seeing some rebound in the economy of GB.”

Dr Lockhart indicated that the Rand remains in the same position pre-Dorian.

The hospital was a 98-bed facility with all the numerous services and several visiting specialists. Dr Lockhart noted that there were interests from many others who were knocking on the doors up to 2019, wishing to provide services at Grand Bahama Health Services.

Dr Lockhart said that up to that point it was acknowledged that RMH, with its 98-bed facility, was inadequate for the northern Bahamas.

He said there was much talk about expanding and building a new facility, and then along came Dorian, which compromised the entire hospital. About 30 to 40 percent of the facility was demolished.

After major renovations were completed, staff moved back into the hospital earlier this year.

Dr Lockhart said there is slight improvement at the facility.

“We now have a 92-bed facility. The facility pre-Dorian was inadequate and now with the renovations, we wound up with a 92-bed facility. You can see very little has changed in terms of improving the provision of health care for GB and in the northern Bahamas,” he said.

He added that the recovery process was also frustrated and prolonged by the COVID pandemic early last year.

However, the hospital official stated that because of the pandemic that they did acquire the Cancer Association Building, which is now retrofitted as an Infectious Disease Unit.

Up to six months ago, Dr Lockhart indicated that there was quite a bit of enthusiasm concerning the second phase of the renovation to the Rand to include a four-story complex.

He said: “That would have significantly and tremendously improved the health care delivery in GB as it stands now.”

With the change in government, the project is now under review.

Dr Lockhart stated that even though successive governments recognize that a new hospital is what is needed in Freeport for the northern Bahamas, he said construction of a four-story complex would take at least two to three years.

“The present government has indicated that a hospital facility is needed, but they really have not given any concrete plans as yet,” he said.

The hospital official said they are appreciative of the assistance that was given to the newly renovated Rand.

“We are really thankful to all the NGOs, and the Rotary Clubs in Freeport that jumped on board and did a mammoth task in retrofitting the wards with beds, and equipment donated by the NGOs.”

“However, a huge challenge still remains with equipment, especially for the operating room to allow some of the procedures and services that were offered prior to Dorian that were damaged or lost, to allow us to continue with services we provided up to that point.”

Dr Lockhart has indicated that there is still a need for assistance to get the Rand where it needs to be.

“The RMH presently still is struggling with a number of challenges, and we certainly look forward to assistance from any agency, any NGO that can provide assistance because as in bygone years we all know that the Bahamas is not in a position to assist the RMH in the way it should,'' he said.