THE TRIBUNE
Friday, October 11, 2019, PAGE 11
$20m repair bill for Rand and Marsh Harbour Clinic By LEANDRA ROLLE lrolle@tribunemedia.net
WITH cost of repairs to the Rand Memorial Hospital and Marsh Harbour Clinic said to be more than $20m, Health Minister Dr Duane Sands believes it is possible that the government will have to acquire additional loans to assist the recovery process in the wake of Hurricane Dorian. “The Abaco clinic is in excess to $2m, inclusive of equipment, damage to the structures, etc. In terms of the Rand (in Grand Bahama), we anticipate the costs of approximately $19m… so far, we (at the Ministry of Health) have calculated almost $100m in added costs,” he said. “Those costs don’t just come out of the sky. We have to identify cost savings. It is likely that the government of The Bahamas will have to get additional loans and I’m sure the minister of finance
and the prime minister will reveal that information,” he said. Speaking to reporters at a mental health conference yesterday, Dr Sands noted the Ministry of Health, like all other ministries, will have to review its budget and reprioritise spending as a result of Dorian. “Abaco and Grand Bahama play a critical role in revenue generation... we now have added expenditure, things that we could not have anticipated and, so, yes…..we have to determine what the priorities are for the next ten months,” he said. However, for the moment, Dr Sands said the ministry’s main areas of focus will be geared towards the remediation of healthcare facilities in Abaco and Grand Bahama. “You have to continue to provide primary care and acute care all over the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. That is priority,” he added. “We have been in discussions with strategic
partners, in particular the University of Miami through the chairman of the board of trustees, through the dean of their medical school, (and they) have offered to partner with the Marsh Harbour Clinic to get it back to lightning status and to ensure that all of the damage (is) remediated. “We are willing to accept the offer and we are in the process now of completing a memorandum of understanding. In a similar fashion, we have agreed for remediation to the Rand Memorial Hospital and a number of the clinics.” Dr Sands could not say when repairs to the healthcare facilities on Abaco and Grand Bahama will begin and therefore, be completed. According to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Peter Turnquest, the government anticipates spending nearly $230m to assist with recovery efforts following Hurricane Dorian.
‘NATION WILL FACE A MENTAL HEALTH IMPACT FROM STORM’ By LEANDRA ROLLE lrolle@tribunemedia.net AS mental health discussions rise to the forefront in the wake of Hurricane Dorian, Health Minister Dr Duane Sands said yesterday that there will be significant psychological impacts in the country as a result of the powerful Category Five storm. “While we have seen the vast destruction of infrastructure, businesses and homes, the thing that we need to be most concerned about is the psychological, psychosocial impact that weighs heavily on this nation,” he said. “Victims of Dorian continue to speak of loss of family members, friends, homes, jobs, and their livelihoods. We need to accept the fact that there will be significant psychological fallout from Dorian. That fallout will impact not just those we serve, but also me and those in the room.” Dr Sands made these statements yesterday during a conference on mental health in the workplace
held at the University of the Bahamas. In his address, Dr Sands recalled the many visits he made to the storm-impacted islands since Dorian, adding that the experience alone is enough to “make grown people cry.” “I have travelled to Grand Bahama multiple times and I’ve been to Abaco four times and I have heard, and I have seen the impact of Hurricane Dorian on people that can rock and has rocked me to my core,” he said. He continued: “Now more than ever, the Ministry of Health and all the mental health professionals in this country have to use this opportunity for several things – for one, to demonstrate the efficacy of mental health services, but also to demonstrate the importance of the need to service the psychosocial needs of our population.” One such psychological effect Dr Sands highlighted is post-traumatic stress disorder. “We need to recognise that post-traumatic stress disorder does not only
apply to those who experienced trauma but those who have witnessed it or know of somebody who has,” he said. “And so, we have not just 75,000 at-risk persons but we have 400,000 at-risk persons with PTSD.” Considering these psychological impacts, Dr Sands suggested that the need to protect and safeguard people’s mental health in the wake of Dorian is more urgent than ever. “We have never faced anything like Dorian and God-willing, we will never have to face anything like Dorian (again). So, our task now is indeed a massive one. Let us understand our mission and let us attack it with zeal,” he added. “There are many people who are hurting and there are many people who are suffering. So, while resilience is important, we can never downplay the significance of persons talking to a trusted friend or to a trained counselor or mental health professional to ensure that they’re coping after this storm in a healthy way.”
WAITING IS OVER FOR 25 NURSES By RIEL MAJOR Tribune Staff Reporter rmajor@tribunemedia.net
TWENTY-FIVE nurses received their job appointment letters from the Ministry of Health after waiting for more than a year. Speaking to reporters at a press conference on Wednesday, Health Minister Dr Duane Sands said it represented the end of an unfortunate era where the process of completion of training until appointment has taken far too long. He said: “I believe that particularly as it relates to nurses and I’ve said this a number of times that collectively now the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of the Public Service, the Ministry of National Security and the Ministry of Education has to find a way to compress this process. “We are committed to it and it’s going to happen and certainly this group should be the last group that would have to suffer the indignity of having that very prolonged wait... it is a privilege and pleasure to welcome you to the Ministry of Health. Certainly, we recognise the sacrifice that
you have been making ever since you’ve completed your training.” Dr Sands added: “We realise that you have gone above and beyond and your efforts have not been unrecognised and…I simply want to say that it is a privilege and a pleasure to welcome you officially to the Ministry of Health and to be able to confirm you as a part of the civil service.” The minister said health officials would like to compress this process from a year to 60 days. He said: “There is a level of diligence that is required in order to verify credentials and to make sure everything is in order. But to have persons working full time and to be expected to smile and work hard when inside they are suffering? (Being) concerned about not being able to pay bills, not being able to provide food for their children so on and so forth is really a problem. “It is certainly something that has been really painful for me to see and I’ll tell you if I see another nurse in my office crying, it has been very sad that the system hasn’t been able to be responsive to needs.
‘God grant me the serenity to accept the things that I cannot change and the courage to change the things I can.’ “This is one of them that we can change. As trained clinical nurses or registered nurses await their official appointment, they continued to get a stipend. That stipend has occasionally not shown up when it should have. It might have been late and so on and so forth because of the way they would have entered the system.” Dr Sands said before their appointments to the civil service the nurses were not entitled to national insurance benefits. “These are some very serious issues that have to be resolved and so these are recognised but they are crosscutting and require a progressive view of how we engage and appoint professionals moving forward,” he said. “The difference between their final salary and their stipend is not insignificant. Hopefully all of that money is not hypothecated or spent because they are entitled to a significant amount of back pay.” Dr Sands could not give a price tag on the back pay.
DR DUANE SANDS, Minister of Health.
Photo: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff