Pregnant women and babies in danger

The claim comes from former medical director of the South West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) Dr Anand Chattergoon who said over the past few weeks the Point Fortin Area Hospital (PFAH) has been without a full time anaesthetist. If an emergency arises the women have to be rushed to San Fernando General Hospital miles away. Chattergoon said he has failed in his attempts to have the authorities appoint an anaesthetist and fearing that a crisis might be looming, over the weekend he penned a strongly worded letter to SWRHA Board Chairman Dr Alexander Sinanan and his deputy Valerie Rawlins.

He forwarded copies to SWRHA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Anil Gosine, Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh, Acting Director of Health Dr Dale Sookoo and Head of Obstetrics/Gynaecology Dr Krishna Rampersadsingh.

According to Chattergoon instead of dealing with the problem, pregnant women from the remote areas are now forced to make the long and arduous trip by ambulance to the San Fernando General Hospital (SFGH). Chattergoon is an anaethestist.

Chattergoon said: “The failure of the CEO of the SWRHA to provide a full-time anaesthetist to the PFAH is a gross dereliction of duty and a grave injustice to the pregnant patients who hail from the southern peninsula of the island.” He went on to say: “Because of the failure of the CEO to assign a full-time anaesthetist to the PFAH, high-risk pregnancies and first pregnancies from the southern part of the island as far down as Icacos are currently being shunted to the already overburdened SFGH which from time to time, is short of beds, so patients have to sit on chairs.” The grave situation was recently brought to his attention and as a result Chattergoon told Newsday that two weeks ago he offered his services to the SWRHA.

“But to date I have not had any response to my offer,” he told Newsday as he claimed that the wheels of the SWRHA continue to turn slowly and sluggishly.

He asked: “Are you waiting for a disaster to happen before you address this situation? “Where there is a will, there is a way. This is an easy problem to fix if the will to fix it is there.” He said an anaesthetists’ pool exist at the SFGH from which any one anaesthetist could be chosen to work at the PFAH where there is an operating theatre with dedicated theatre nurses and qualified obstetricians, all of which are available for obstetric and gynaecological emergencies.

He continued: “The failure of the CEO to assign an anaesthetist from the anaesthetists’ pool at the SFGH is demonstrative of poor leadership on his part.The tail is being allowed to wag the dog when the CEO is yielding to the unjustified and unlawful refusal of the anaesthetists at the SFGH to provide anaesthetic coverage for emergency surgeries at the PFAH which also comes under the umbrella of the SWRHA.

Chattergoon added: “It takes half the time for an anaesthetist to drive down to the PFAH as it does for an ambulance, provided one is available to transport patient and nurse from the PFAH to the SFGH. The obstetricians are reluctant to induce labour at the PFAH because of the unavailability of an anaesthetist for emergency caesarean sections, should this become necessary. This is unacceptable and unsatisfactory in this day and age.” Chattergoon told Newsday he offered his services because the assigned anesthetist is ill and won’t be out for the next two months.

His concerns have been passed on to Member of Parliament Edmund Dillon who is also National Security Minister.

He further told Newsday: “I received a text from him (Dillon) this morning (yesterday) and he promised to discuss it with the health minister tomorrow (today).

Efforts to reach Gosine and Dillon yesterday for comment were unsuccessful.