Activists protest GPHC cancer deaths

Jan 31, 2019 News

Over a score of social activists turned out yesterday, at the Ministry of Public Health’s Brickdam office, to protest at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), following the deaths of three children, who died after receiving treatment for cancer at the state hospital.
Leader of the picket, Sherlina Nageer, said that she orchestrated the movement, not just because of the recent cancer deaths, but because of the precedent that the hospital has set for itself, with regards to the provision of quality healthcare to Guyana’s citizens.
She also noted that the public hospital serves predominantly poor, working class Guyanese; that those persons cannot afford private healthcare, and have no choice but to settle for subpar service.
“Year after year, poor Guyanese utilising the public health services continue to suffer poor quality healthcare – avoidable errors that leave their loved ones dead or seriously injured; harsh and disrespectful care from healthcare workers, medication shortages and lack of key services at many facilities.”
Nageer said that though she acknowledges there are good, progressive healthcare workers, too many serious problems persist.
“Accountability for medical errors remains a systemic challenge – with the health and wellbeing of women, children and babies being particularly affected. The lives of poor Guyanese matter.”
Nageer said that there has been little to no effort by the hospital management to uphold accountability surrounding the measures taken to sanction staff found to be involved in malpractice or other errors.
“They need to implement better oversight mechanisms to reduce ‘errors’ and enforce stronger penalties against staff who disregard and disrespect patients. Patients need to know exactly what the complaints procedure is, and where to go, in facilities in all regions, not just Georgetown.”
She recalled visiting certain hinterland areas and noting shortages in a series of drugs, as well as the issue of drugs being overpriced. She said that birth control pills and other abortion services are not available at public facilities in the hinterland communities.
As a result, private clinics sell these drugs at highly inflated prices, making it difficult for women to access. She said that the private healthcare providers also should be subjected to stronger oversight.
“The Medical Council must also perform better– in a more timely and transparent manner with public reports. They need independent persons there as well, not just doctors investigating their colleagues.”

Activists outside of the Ministry of Public Health, Brickdam

She said that politicians could build more confidence in the system if they, themselves, made use of public facilities, as opposed to searching out private or foreign healthcare. It is not enough, she said, for those politicians to only visit those healthcare facilities for publicity stunts, to take photos with babies.
Nageer also said that the group is protesting what she describes as ‘hoggish’ behaviour by some hospital staff when handling patients and other members of the public. She believes that there is a dire need for medical malpractice laws.
“This picket is a call for justice, accountability, and better quality healthcare for all Guyanese. A nation’s wealth is the health of the population and too many poor Guyanese are punishing unnecessarily. We deserve and demand better.”
The protests are scheduled to continue next Wednesday outside of the Ministry of Public Health’s Brickdam office.
The families of Curwayne Edwards, Roshani Seegobin and Sharezer Mendonca are yet to receive conclusive details on the cause of the children’s death, though Kaieteur News was told that the hospital’s investigations have already concluded that an intravenous medication, Vincristine, was administered to the spine, instead of the muscle.
Vincristine is marketed under the brand name Oncovin, with strict instructions to refrain from administration to the spinal cord.
The postmortem examination conducted on the remains of six-year-old Sherezer Mendonca last Monday, proved inconclusive. The autopsy was performed at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) mortuary by Nancy Sitchoa in the presence of the Mendonca’s family, Government Pathologist, Dr. Nehaul Singh and Dr. Wesley Greaves, an independent Pathologist from Trinidad and Tobago.
However, relatives of the dead child noted that the independent Pathologist took a few samples from the body for further testing. The family is considering taking legal action against the State.

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