5 / 55
Page | 4
THE STATE OF THE NATION
o
While the PNP government celebrates every passage of yet another IMF
Test, bills remain unpaid, leaving our social service infrastructure virtually in
tatters and disarray.
o
Our doctors and nurses suffer in silence as they scrounge around to find
basic things like gauge, gloves, speculums, disinfectant, medication and
protective gear with which to safely and confidently discharge their
professional duties, often times placing themselves and their patients at
risk.
o
The Jamaica Observer reported the following on January 5, of this year:
“At the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI), the situation is
not much better.
“There are no purple top tubes which are used to check your blood
count. There are no branulas used to insert the IV drip. There is no
prednisone – anti-inflammatory drug – so if anyone comes in with an
allergic reaction, asthma or auto immune disease there’s nothing
that can be done here at the UHWI. Also there’s no lidocaine, which
is used as an anaesthesia so anyone who needs to get stitches will
feel the pain and this is a huge issue as the doctors have to
reschedule many procedures,” the doctor said.
“There is no barium enema (a special X-ray of the large intestine), so
if you have abnormal bleeding from your rectum you can’t check to