The Tribune

By KHRISNA RUSSELL

Tribune Chief Reporter

krussell@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMAS Nurses Union President Amancha Williams says Princess Margaret Hospital’s non-urgent surgical procedure backlog could continue for a long time, as large numbers of nurses continue to leave the public system for lucrative opportunities abroad.

Meanwhile, Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville could not say how many cases were backlogged, but he attributed the issue to “wear and tear” on the system caused by COVID-19.

 On Monday, the Public Hospitals Authority acknowledged that there may be significant wait times for non-urgent surgical procedures at PMH. PHA said this is due to the suspension of non-emergency surgical procedures as part of the ever-evolving COVID-19 management protocols, coupled with nursing shortages throughout the system.

 It came after a news report claimed that a mother had been at PMH for two months waiting for a procedure.

 Yesterday, the BNU president said officials had failed to come up with any attractive plans to make nurses remain in the public health care system.

 “(The backlog) may have something to do with shortage of nurses because at one point in time they had to send them to the various wards because of COVID,” she said.

 “That’s the reason I’m thinking of, because most of us nurses if we were working in (the) eye theatre or if we were working in some other specialised area, we had to be moved.”

 She also said: “If we don’t recruit and continue to lose, I’d say 25 to 30 nurses quarterly, this could continue for a long time.”

 Ms Williams said large numbers of nurses will continue to leave the sector as the government has yet to offer anything attractive.

 “We have not come up with anything good to keep them and I mean two years for an industrial agreement? Come on. They should want to do something to keep the nurses.

 “The Americans have been making offers that can’t be refused and our specialty nurses continue to take these opportunities,” she said.

 For his part, Dr Darville said officials were looking into the issue and intended to “do a lot more” although he did not go into detail.

 “COVID has definitely taken up a lot of our resources. There’s been much wear and tear in the public healthcare system and the ministry as well as the PHA has been working diligently now to do the necessary repairs that have caused some of the backlog with our surgical cases to put in place additional manpower so that we can now begin to address some of those backlogs.

 “But as we speak, we are now doing some of that and we intend to do a lot more.”

 Asked to say how many cases were backlogged, he said: “It’s difficult to say the cases (that are) backlogged. We have a wide cross section of services, surgery, internal medicine, gastroenterology and the list goes on and on and even ophthalmology there are backlogged and we’re having meetings to try to address those backlogs.”