A Lethem nursery school teacher died at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC) on Saturday night after testing positive for COVID-19.
Donna Ambrose-Greaves, 25, is the country’s 15th known fatality from the pandemic sweeping the globe and yesterday the GPHC denied her husband’s claim that she had picked up the infection at the hospital.
A mother of one, Ambrose-Greaves was air-dashed to the city on June 27th after being admitted to the Lethem Regional Hospital as a result of complaints of severe pain about her body, feeling weak and blurred vision. The last of three COVID-19 tests done on her showed the woman to be positive for the virus. She passed away at 11 pm on Saturday.
Following her death, the woman’s husband, Franklin Greaves posted a video on Facebook declaring that his wife showed no signs of the virus at Lethem and did not test positive for COVID-19 until last Monday, two days after arriving at the hospital. He further noted in his video that neither he, nor their son or other immediate family members have shown any symptoms for the virus though they would have last been in contact with Donna more than a week prior to her passing. The man also said that he intends to take action against the institution.
The hospital in a response to Greaves’ claims said, “….The Board of Directors, Administration and staff of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) wish to express sincerest condolences to Mr. Franklin Greaves, the husband of the late Donna Ambrose Greaves, her relatives and friends.
“The GPHC notes and wishes to refute claims that Donna Greaves contracted COVID-19 while being a patient at our institution. While our commitment to medical confidentiality restricts us from sharing details of Ms. Greaves’ clinical records, we maintain that these claims are furthest from the facts, and wish to state in a definitive manner that Donna Greaves did not contract COVID-19 at the GPHC.
“We strongly condemn the proclivity to cast blame on our hard working and dedicated doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers who continue to risk their lives daily to care for patients in the wake of a deadly pandemic. This practice of demoralizing healthcare professionals must cease. The Corpora-tion continues to practice strict protocols and quality control measures to eliminate transmission and maintain a safe space for our staff, patients and visitors….”
It is unclear how the hospital established where Ambrose-Greaves contracted the infection as upon her arrival at the GPHC she was taken to the emergency unit and then placed in an open ward. Had there been concerns that she had contracted the disease or might have been exposed to it she should have been in isolation.
Greaves told Stabroek News that Donna was transported to the city for treatment after it was found that she had a blood disorder and needed blood. Asked whether his wife had suffered health issues prior to this recent incident, Greaves said that the two share a seven-year-old son who was delivered via caesarian section. A month after his birth, Donna began experiencing severe back pains which she had told him could be as a result of her catching “lining cold”. According to the man, she has since been ailing intermittently from these pains and would be treated at home or obtain medication from the pharmacy in the area for the pain.
He also pointed out that before she was rushed to the hospital on June 25th, she was also taken to the hospital earlier in June where she was admitted for half a night. Greaves said that the pain had expanded from her back to the rest of her body a month prior to her first admission. He explained that because they did not like the way the hospital dealt with patients they decided to take care of Donna at home until early June when the pains worsened and she was taken to the hospital. Her blood pressure he said was really high. Donna was given pain medication and was kept for half of the night and was advised by the doctor to be on bed rest when she returned home.
Anaemic
The family learnt of the blood disorder following tests done at the hospital in Lethem after her admission on June 25th. Blood tests showed that Donna was anaemic as her blood count was very low. Doctors said that she was in dire need of a blood transfusion. Though she was showing no symptoms of COVID-19 nor had travelled out of the region, doctors at Lethem requested that a test be done after they learnt that a sister of the woman had travelled from Georgetown to Lethem to care for her after she had fallen ill. Greaves said the test done was the 24-hour test but because it had to be sent to the city and they would have to await the results, a COVID-19 rapid test was also done which showed negative. The result for the first COVID-19 test was not given until last Monday morning and it was negative.
“She come down from the interior to Georgetown with an oxygen mask which the doctor explained that because of her low blood count, she was suffering from shortness of breath. She was rushed to the emergency ward and doctors started running all the blood tests. She spent until 2 am Sunday morning before they moved her to the female ward. She (Donna) walked me through everything that happened over the phone because I was not with her. Her sister was the one who went with her to the public hospital. Another one of her sisters is one of the doctors at the Georgetown Hospital but she wasn’t the one (who) was helping to look after her but she was there; she helped to speed up the process. She spent one day and one night up to Monday morning in the female ward. Between that time she was in constant contact with me. She said to me that she was experiencing an itchy throat which she claims was because of her exposure to the AC in the emergency ward and that she needed water or lime for the throat. This was the first symptoms she complained about. She never had a fever and she never had a cough. She said to me that she was always wearing a mask and that the doctors looking after her were always protected with their masks and their gowns but she said there were other patients in the female ward that were coughing next to her and ask that we bring sanitizers and Lysol because of them. I talked to her around 5 o’clock Monday morning”, Greaves recounted as was related to him by his late wife and her sisters. That would be the last time he spoke to his wife.
Greaves said that on Monday morning after their call, Donna began experiencing shortness of breath and went into shock before falling unconscious. Doctors rushed her to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). She never regained consciousness. It was also on Monday morning when the family received the results for the first COVID test done in Lethem that showed that Donna was negative. Greaves said that despite the two negative tests, doctors were suspicious that his wife may have contracted the virus after she had complained of an itchy throat and shortness of breath before falling unconscious. A third COVID test was carried out Monday morning and the results Greaves said, came back on Tuesday night as positive. The widower further said that on Monday when she was taken to the ICU, Donna was kept in an isolation part of the unit as the result had not yet returned and was then placed in the section patients are kept only after her result returned positive.
The man said that his wife was sedated as doctors said that it would keep her calm. He noted also that Donna whose blood type was O+ was reacting to the blood that was supposed to be given to her and therefore no blood transfusion was done. Greaves said that doctors told the family that his wife had fever twice during the time she was in the ICU which according to the doctors was as a result of the machines she was hooked up to. Prior to that there was no reported fever.
He said that he has also learnt that medical personnel from the Lethem Regional Hospital who would have come into contact with his wife tested negative for the virus and were put on quarantine. Meanwhile, during the course of last week after his wife was tested positive, a medical team arrived at his home to have him and his son tested for the virus but Greaves said they did not take the tests as neither he nor his son was experiencing any symptoms. A seven-year-old niece who lives with the family however was tested but her results came back negative. Donna’s parents and sister were also tested and their tests have also come back as negative.
In regard to the statement made by the GPHC, Greaves said, “They are denying. I say if they are denying it then they are putting the blame on somebody else. I think they want to say she contracted the case at Lethem because she was living close to the [Brazilian] border but the doctors at Lethem are claiming that they are all negative.”
When contacted by this newspaper yesterday, GPHC public relations officer, Chelauna Providence stood by the statement released by the hospital. Asked whether the hospital is certain that Donna did not contract the virus there, Providence said, “Oh yes, we can be very sure. I’m not saying that she came with it (the virus) from Lethem but we can be very sure that she didn’t contract it at the GPHC.”
The dead woman’s twin, Madona Ambrose-Greaves has since posted on social media of her loss. “I will miss talking to you every single day…. It [Donna’s death] ripped part of me completely. I assured you it will be over and I never think this way my love. So many questions left unanswered. Hospital can be best and [worst] place to take your love one….”
Greaves noted that the family has since requested a post-mortem be done and is currently awaiting the hospital’s reply on this.
Ambrose-Greaves is the third person to have died from the virus within a week. She is the youngest COVID-19 fatality so far. Thirty-four-year old Abdool Khan of Bartica and 42-year-old Kevin Ridley of Albouystown were the other two COVID-19 fatalities over the last week.
