Latest update November 10th, 2024 1:00 AM
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Patients left to fend for themselves as ‘sick out’ escalates
Patients from various wards at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) have been left to fend for themselves since Saturday after more than 300 nurses at the institution reported sick.
This is the second time in 11 days since nurses from the public hospital have decided to report sick to protest Government’s five per cent pay increase.
Government has refused to agree to the workers’ demand of 25 per cent increase.
No Nurse at the Nurses’ Station yesterday
The health care workers reported sick since Saturday and according to an official, the absence of a high number of nurses has placed severe pressure on the already limited human resource capacity at the hospital.
When Kaieteur News visited the hospital yesterday; three nurses were in Male Surgical One Ward attending to 35 patients, while one nurse was left to look after approximately 25 patients in the Male Surgical Two Ward.
Several patients complained about being left unattended since Saturday. Roy Gonsalves, who underwent surgery at the health institution a few days ago, was readmitted at the hospital last Wednesday after his wound became infected.
“My wound was supposed to be cleaned everyday but since Saturday there was no nurse to clean it. It was bloody and oozing a lot. It is only after my mom called someone this morning that a nurse come and clean it.”
Another patient, Ricky Anton, said that his wife had to take care of him and assist two other patients in the ward.
“This thing is getting serious. Imagine what is going to happen with patients if all the nurses decided to strike. This government is not very caring at all. Why they can’t give the nurses the 15 percent and everybody will be comfortable? The ministers does thief more than that,” a patient opined.
Kaieteur News was told that nurses from the Maternity Unit were sent to attend to the patients from the Male Surgical Wards.
Meanwhile, Michael Khan, Chief Executive Officer of GPHC said that he only received one complaint of a patient being neglected.
He explained that a patient’s wound was not cleaned during the morning hours, but it was cleaned by 13:00hrs.
According to Khan, though challenged by the lack of staff, management is putting measures in place to continue operations smoothly. He said that during a management meeting today, additional systems would be put in place to deal with shortfalls.
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