BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Tuesday July 8, 2014, CMC - Doctors at Barbados’ main public medical facility, Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH), are from Tuesday performing only emergency medical procedures, owing to a shortage of supplies.
Vice President of the Barbados Association of Medical Practitioners (BAMP), Dr Vikash Chatrani, said the decision to adopt the new working schedule at an emergency meeting of BAMP members on Monday.
He said that representatives of the QEH’s administration were in attendance and confirmed that the hospital was experiencing critical shortages in basic and essential supplies.
“As a result of these critical shortages BAMP was informed that the QEH would only be performing urgent and emergency surgical procedures.”
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Earlier this year, pharmaceutical providers to QEH had withdrawn their services, protesting overdue payment for goods delivered, and resumed supplies only after government paid BDS$20 million (One BDS$ = 50 US cents) into the debt account.
“It cannot be business as usual. We believe that the short-term financial injections (or) supplements have failed to rectify the serious situation that exists at the QEH, and we urge the government to immediately restore adequate levels of funding in order to prevent harm to our patients,” Dr. Chatrani said.
The government has not yet responded to the lastest action of the doctors.
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Doctors performing only emergency procedures at Barbados public hospital
