The Tribune

By KHRISNA RUSSELL

Tribune Chief Reporter

krussell@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMAS Nurses Union president Amancha Williams says one nurse was injured and others have been left mentally shaken after a fight broke out between patients in the Emergency Department of Princess Margaret Hospital.

She said patients also witnessed the “scary” incident and were pushed and thrown around in the confusion.

Speaking to The Tribune yesterday, the union president questioned the whereabouts of security officers during the incident, adding: “The security wasn’t there.”

Ms Williams said not only does security at the hospital need to be beefed up, but the same is also needed at community clinics.

She said that about two months ago a shooting incident occurred at Elizabeth Estates prompting the people involved to run to the nearby clinic.

Nurses there at the time received no assistance despite there being a police station nearby, the BNU president claimed.

In a statement earlier this week, the Public Hospitals Authority said a patient was arrested after he attacked another patient at PMH on Saturday. The statement said no other patients or hospital staff were physically injured as a result of the incident and that two knives were recovered.

 The attacker was restrained by Emergency Department staff, Royal Bahamas Defence Force officers deployed to the Emergency Department and hospital security officers, PHA said.

 “This is the festive season and the country is open, so we have to beef up the security in Accident and Emergency to ensure the safety of the nurses when we are accepting gunshot wounds and stab wounds and all those stuff,” Ms Williams said yesterday.

 “The main problem was that there was no security there. So, it was the nurses who were struggling and the porters struggling to assist in that big commotion at A&E and so we have been asking that security is there at all the locations.

 “We have been having a security challenge at the clinics also because we had a shootout in Elizabeth Estates about two months ago roughly and after they got shot they ran to the clinic and security couldn’t defend them and the police station is right across the road. Still, no one came to assist the nurses. So, we asked that the commodore and the commissioner of police and PHA look at this.

 “We have security firms in the hospital that are being paid out of the PHA purse in addition to the police and Royal Bahamas Police Force.”

 Speaking about the recent incident at PMH, she said: “One nurse was injured and everybody else was psychologically affected and the patients also witnessed and were pushed and thrown around you know throughout the area.

 “That was scary. This is not the first incident for us. More severe incidents have happened before. This is ongoing and traumatising us and if anything happens, we don’t have no insurance to cover us and so that puts up a red flag.

 “The nurses say they ain’t working where there is no security and you can’t just have security there to look in people bags.”

 Asked about the matter on Tuesday, National Security Minister Wayne Munroe told reporters the government does not anticipate placing additional defence force officers at public clinics and hospitals at this time.

 He said the Public Hospitals Authority has the responsibility for ensuring security at its facilities.

 When asked about possible increased security at public hospitals and clinics, Mr Munroe said the incident showed that even the presence of a static guard does not mean people will not act violently.

 “That should tell you that even if you have a static guard that’s not a guarantee that people won’t act unlawfully. In terms of manpower to put static guards at every clinic that is something that is not anticipated at the moment,” he said.