-press conference to be held
Three weeks since a patient at the Georgetown Public Hospital died after allegedly being left unattended for hours, the hospital’s administration is yet to make public the results of the inquiry into the woman’s death.
Contacted yesterday for the status of the report, Chief Executive Officer Michael Khan told Stabroek News that the report was completed and a number of recommendations were made. However Khan said that he has spoken with the chairman of the hospital’s board and a decision has since been made for a press conference to be held sometime next week, when he said the matter would be dealt with and the findings revealed.
Khan had previously told this newspaper last week, a few days before the hospital had originally said it would complete the report, that it had to be subjected to a review and would be released this week
Twenty-seven-year-old Basmattie Balkarran of Ruby Backdam, Parika, the mother of three, was first treated at the Leonora Cottage Hospital over three weeks ago and was transferred to GPH the same day but her relatives had told this newspaper that even though she was rushed to Georgetown in an ambulance and was in a critical condition she had to wait for hours before being taken into the Emergency Room (ER). By the time the doctor was ready to attend to her, she breathed her last. The woman reportedly waited for treatment outside the ER for seven hours.
Following this newspaper’s publication of the incident, the GPH had released a statement announcing the establishment of the committee to inquire into the woman’s death and had stated too that it was “fully committed to finding out exactly what happened when the patient was brought to the Accident and Emergency Unit. The statement had said too that the committee comprised the Sister-in-Charge of the Accident and Emergency Unit and the Assistant Director of Nursing, among others to fully investigate the matter. Further, the hospital said it viewed the article with “deep concern.”
A post-mortem examination revealed that Balkarran died of a ruptured brain aneurysm and massive intracranial bleeding. The hospital had said that the death of Basmattie Balkarran “may not have been preventable… but that it was still pursuing investigation as to why she was not seen in a timelier manner.” Relatives of the woman told Stabroek News that they have not heard from the hospital administration since. They had told this newspaper too that they are doubtful that the hospital’s investigation of the incident will yield them justice.
They had said that their primary reason for airing the incident in the press is to highlight the need for medical personnel to pay more attention to patients, especially those in critical condition.
Balkarran was cremated two Thursdays ago.
