Sav mayor failed to help with hospital overcrowding he’s shedding tears over - Tufton

Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton is redirecting some of the blame for the overcrowding at Savanna-la-Mar Hospital's accident and emergency ward to Mayor Bertel Moore for his alleged failure to provide space for social patients now housed at the hospital.

The Gleaner reported on Tuesday that the Savanna-la-Mar mayor stated that, on a recent visit to the hospital, he broke down in tears when he saw the unsuitable condition where patients, doctors, and other medical staff are forced to operate.

Moore noted that the problem of inadequate bed space at the medical facility must be addressed to prevent children and adults from sharing the cramped space on the ward as they seek medical care.

However, responding to the story on social media platform X, Tufton suggested Moore had not fulfilled his promises which would have eased the overcrowding problem.

"I fully appreciate His Worship's empathy, but he did promise to create space for over 35 social cases taking up beds in Sav hospital - to create space for those he is shedding tears for, waiting for beds in A&E - but he never did," he stated.

"We need to do more. Let's do it Your Worship!" Tufton added.

The Gleaner had reported that the reason given for the hospital's bed-space problem is an increase in social patients and a surge in dengue and respiratory cases that have pushed the town's medical facility beyond its operational capacity.

Earlier this month, Camille Lewin, chief executive officer at the hospital, said social cases over the last three months had increased further.

“Our numbers have been rising. In July and August, we were at 22, the count for social cases, and this month, we are at 32,” Lewin told The Gleaner recently.

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