– Health Minister
THE nurse of the West Demerara Regional Hospital (WDRH) who was distributing medication in the ward when 15-year-old Shemar Miggins died has been suspended. Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of the Ministry of Health (MOH), Dr. Shamdeo Persaud stated yesterday morning that the suspension was pending the completion of an investigation into the teenager’s death at the hospital on Saturday last.

Health Minister, Dr Bheri Ramsaran reported that the teenager had been a patient of the hospital for a few days for a relatively simple condition, an abscess on his foot caused by the puncture wound of a fish bone, and he was recovering satisfactorily. The minister stated that on Saturday he received the report that the young man had suddenly died and his death had caused a commotion among the immediate relatives, well wishers and other persons. This resulted in an angry response which could have developed into an unsatisfactory situation and may have led to a confrontation with the staff of the hospital. At this point, the minister noted, the assistance of the Guyana Police Service was requested to ensure order.
The Health Minister, speaking at a press conference yesterday, described the teenager’s death as distressing and unfortunate. He explained that the CMO had been quickly dispatched to the institution, despite being constantly moving during the day with visits to the Mahaica and Mahaicony hospitals accompanying the visiting medical team from the George Washington University Hospital in the United States. Dr. Persaud arrived at the hospital within two hours of the incident, and an investigation was immediately launched.
Dr. Ramsaran stated that the teen’s medical chart has been secured for the full-fledged investigation, and the report coming out of this will be sent to the nursing council and nursing fraternity to determine where nursing procedures were not followed.
To date there seem to have been no breaches in terms of medical management and timeliness in dispensing medication.
Meanwhile, the minister has spoken to relatives of the teen. “We will be giving as much support to the family as possible, we will be keeping in touch with them,” he said. He noted that the situation was also painful to the staff of the hospital. “Losing a patient in this manner is not only painful for the family which is grieving; it also is painful for the persons involved. There are no winners in this situation,” he said.
He explained that the hospital was functioning as per normal despite the fact that it was the weekend. Doctors were on duty and on call at all times.
Minister Ramsaran reiterated that the response was immediate since “first of all there was the angry crowd to be addressed; and I want my ministry to be responding more and more promptly to such events. We have been doing this in the past, but because those responses are not to such high profile events, they are missed. But we are trying to have our response time cut to the minimum, and at the same time to show that we are a caring and responsive ministry.”
Meanwhile, the Health Minister observed that even as the Miggins’ crisis was evolving, there were some critical patients who were being managed by the medical staff as they continued work especially in the maternity ward, where two mothers were being monitored.
While recognising the seriousness of the incident, he thanked the staff of the hospital for providing quality service to the pregnant women who were critical at the time. One patient from Fort Island had presented a breech birth and the other who was in prolonged labour and was showing signs of fetal distress. Both cases were resolved by C-sections and were being constantly monitored by the doctors at the hospital.
The Government Information Agency (GINA) reported that, over the past few weeks, beginning late last year, the WDRH was able to relieve some pressure from the Georgetown Public Hospital by performing Caesarian Sections. According to GINA, it had been planned to bring the report on extension and work on the hospital to the attention of the media. However, this will be delayed by the investigation into Miggins’ death.
The CMO will be visiting the hospital again, along with the facilities management personnel, to determine if there are any other undertakings needed at the institution.
Dr. Ramsaran noted that the ministry will have to work very closely with the Regional Democratic Councils when dealing with hospitals, especially in terms of infrastructure. He added that there will be a review of the functioning of the hospital more intensely within the next two days, which will involve the administration of the hospital, medical and nursing staff.