Fix health crisis now – Guy
Published:Thursday | July 1, 2021 | 4:30 PM
Opposition Spokesperson on Health and Wellness, Dr Morais Guy, is calling for Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Christopher Tufton to urgently bring the current crisis in the health sector to an end.
Junior doctors across Jamaica are staging a sick-out to protest against working conditions and the non-renewal of the contracts of more than 100 of their colleagues, among other things.
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In a statement today, Guy argued that the latest development resulted from the lack of seriousness attached to the situation by the health ministry, and says he is concerned about the long-term effects on the ailing healthcare system.
He said meetings had been held, but no resolution was arrived at because of a lack of appreciation of the position taken by the medical workers.
The opposition spokesman said the employment contracts for over 140 doctors had been cancelled, and despite meetings as late as yesterday, no serious effort was made to head off the current impasse, leaving a small cadre of consultants to operate the system.
“It is even more alarming considering that this would be allowed in the current environment of a national crisis due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.
Guy is calling for Tufton and the Ministry of Finance to re-employ these doctors immediately because Jamaica cannot afford this significant brain drain in the health sector.
Last week, he said the Jamaica Medical Doctors Association (JMDA) indicated that trouble loomed in the sector.
Still, the situation was allowed to deteriorate with the withdrawal of services, leaving many institutions without critical care facilities, Guy stressed.
He said the Opposition is overly concerned about the level of services now being available to the public, which is already curtailed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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