News of the deaths of eleven babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital over the last month – including seven over a four-day period from April 4-7, two in February and two in March - has been met with public outrage and consternation, along with strong expressions of regret from our local health and government authorities.
Speaking at the official opening of the new Sangre Grande Hospital Campus yesterday, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley said he was “particularly sad” about the situation, which has left 11 families reeling with inexplicable grief and has undoubtedly rattled any remaining confidence the general population had in the public healthcare delivery system.
Before him, an under-pressure Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh also sought to shrug off calls for his resignation over the issue, while empathising with the grieving parents to the point of suggesting that if he were in their shoes, he too would be looking to sue the State in a quest for justice.
At the end of the day though, nothing can be done to bring back these innocent victims or to compensate loved ones for their horrific loss.
More ironically, the average Trinidadian family has no alternative to public healthcare. So even with the NICU currently under severe public scrutiny and as fears abound amid its continued operation, there is really no other place to go for scores of pregnant women who do not have money to pay for a private delivery.
Based on our checks with local doctors, for those who can afford to go private, a normal delivery can range between $25,000 to $35,000, while for those expectant mothers who are faced with more difficult births, the cost is between $40-60,000 for a C-Section, depending on the institution and the level of medical insurance they personally enjoy.
In short, good health care in Trinidad and Tobago does not come cheap, and for those who cannot afford to pay, grief comes not only in the form of death sometimes, but also in long waits, lack of access to proper nutrition and guidance, in addition to problems with their medical care providers, lack of equipment and improperly functioning equipment at public hospitals, not to mention challenges to do with the physical plants.
This is why sorry is simply not enough as we await the outcome of the independent investigation to be conducted by the Pan American Health (PAHO) into the latest deaths.
There is urgent need for us to raise the overall standard of public healthcare delivery in this country by ensuring that not only the money resources are allocated, but also that our public hospitals are up to mark in terms of proper staffing with qualified and well-trained medical professionals, who not only follow but have a healthy regard for best practices and standards.
Of course, death is a reality we must all face up to, but at the very least those interfacing in our public hospitals should be guaranteed a safe, well-sanitised and bacteria-free environment.
Anything less than that is symptomatic of a public healthcare delivery system that is broken and in urgent need of cure.