Although the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) has been able to link the actions of medical practitioners to the untimely demise of three young cancer patients, sanctions are yet to be meted out. Hospital officials have confirmed that the doctors have been asked to remain off the job pending a decision at the level of the Guyana Medical Council.
However despite reports in the public domain which suggest that the GPHC is awaiting word from the Medical Council before taking further action, Chairman of the said Council, Dr. Navindranauth Rambaran, is insisting that this is not the case. In fact he communicated to the Guyana Standard today that the Council is still awaiting the report on the matter from GPHC.
According to Dr, Rambaran, “we have asked [for the report] and it is still pending their internal protocol. We have asked and we are waiting.”
Hospital officials at a recent press conference said that a thorough investigation into the deaths of the children was conducted by an appointed committee led by Director of Medical and Professional Services, Dr. Fawcett Jeffrey, through the offices of the Deputy Chief Executive Officer, the Assistant Director of Nursing Services, Head of the Paediatric Department and the Pharmacy Manager in collaboration with other heads.
The final report detailing the findings was submitted to the Chief Executive Officer of the hospital, George Lewis, on January 28, 2019 by Dr. Jeffrey. Based on the findings of the investigations, the failure to follow protocol was a direct result of a shortage of trained medical staff. The investigations included the collection of statements from all parties, directly or indirectly involved, and other witnesses otherwise privy to personal information, said Chairperson of the hospital, Ms. Kesaundra Alves.
Alves said that that report blamed “human deficiencies and systemic challenges” for the children’s deaths. When asked to elaborate further on her revelation, it was revealed that the hospital faces a shortage of staff which, at the time, caused the available personnel to be spread thinly across patients and duties. As a result, a senior doctor was not there to supervise the administration of the medication, though this is what is considered ideal.
The report further recommended a number of measures to prevent a re-occurrence of the daunting situation. In so doing, the medical practitioners who were involved in the cases were relieved of their duties and sent on administrative leave on January 29, pending further review of the report and possible disciplinary action.
Following the administration of chemotherapy drugs the three children at the centre of the dilemma suffered adverse reactions on or around January 5, 2019. Kerwayne Edwards, 7, died on January 8 while in the Paediatric Ward, while Roshanie Seegobin, 3, and Sharezer Mendonca, 6, died on January 18 and 24, respectively, in the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU). They were all treated by the same team of medical doctors.
It was revealed that the hospital’s board will be tasked with deciding whether compensation will be given to the affected families.
