WHEN nineteen-year-old Lanita Jacobs tragically passed away due to complications from dengue fever, the staff at the Suddie Public Hospital knew that they had to do everything in their power to save her baby’s life.

Baby Liam made his entry into the world at 35 weeks, weighing 2,050 grams. He was delivered via emergency C-section.
After spending 23 days in the hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), where he received round-the-clock care from dedicated staff and benefitted from the modern pieces of equipment that were installed at the Region Two facility earlier this year, he was, on Saturday, discharged and is now being cared for by his father, Kevin Brummel.
During his stay, Liam received multiple transfusions, including five platelet transfusions, five fresh frozen plasma (FFP) transfusions, and one pack cell (PC) transfusion, due to complications from the dengue fever he had also contracted and sepsis.

When he was discharged, Liam was free of infection. Doctors were satisfied with the results of his blood work and were confident that he was ready to go home with his father.

Dr. Kalesh Latchminarine, head of the neonatal department and a pediatrician, commended the team’s tireless efforts to ensure Liam’s survival.

The dedicated team who cared for the ‘preemie’ included Dr. Latchminarine, Dr. Yelina Acosta, Dr. Azalia Luke, nurses from the Cuban brigade and Guyanese nurse Alicia Belle.

While speaking to this publication, Dr. Latchminarine highlighted the numerous challenges Liam faced. Among those were respiratory distress that required non-invasive respiratory support. Despite the obstacles, the team was deeply moved by Liam’s resilience and unique ways of communicating his needs.

His mother was eight months pregnant when she was admitted to the hospital on June 26, 2024. She was suffering from severe bleeding and suspected dengue fever. A test later confirmed that she was positive for the mosquito-borne disease.

Her condition worsened, leading to her being transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation where she later succumbed.

An elated Kevin Brummel expressed his gratitude and relief at having his son home despite the loss of his wife.

He thanked the hospital’s staff, especially Dr. Latchminarine and team for their dedicated efforts.

Meanwhile, Regional Health Officer, Dr. Ranjeev Singh, stated that the NICU will continue to support mothers and their babies.

He underscored the government’s investment of millions of dollars to equip the neonatal department with sufficient resources to save babies’ lives.

Dr. Singh expressed his satisfaction with the team’s ability to care for Liam despite the many complications he faced.

Since its commissioning in January, 41 babies have been cared for in the NICU.

Earlier this month Dr. Singh had cause to strongly refute Opposition claims of dysfunctional Gynaecology and Neonatal Departments at Suddie Hospital.

Without producing any concrete evidence, Opposition Parliamentarian, Dr. Karen Cummings, claimed, at a news conference, that some of the services being offered at the facility were so inadequate that there was a high incidence of newborn deaths. Unfounded claims about the staffing situation in the aforementioned departments were also made.

However, the RHO had asserted that the information related to the media by Dr. Cummings was not only erroneous but was a boldfaced attempt to tarnish the staff and the hospital’s good reputation.

He went as far as to share statistics, insisting that the NICU in particular was functioning well and had the staff and equipment that were required to deal with critical cases.

The story of Baby Liam’s survival is evidence of the unit’s ability to effectively care for all newborns in distress.