Rudolph Small has been removed from the post of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC).
In a March 1, 2021 letter to Small, which has been seen by Stabroek News, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health Malcolm Watkins advised that “a decision has been made for you to be removed from the post… with immediate effect.” He further instructed Small to hand over all property belonging to the LHC to the Regional Health Officer Dr. Gregory Harris.
While no reason for the decision has been offered in the letter, Small has been faced with protests and calls for his removal after he was reported as saying that LHC nurses regularly abandoned their duties to engage in extramarital affairs.
On Monday the nurses staged a protest to push for his removal over the comments.
“We need justice” and “The CEO must go” were among the chants of the nurses, some of whom also held placards as they protested outside of the hospital’s doors.
The Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) last Friday requested Small’s removal, while stressing the nurses had lost confidence in his ability to lead.
“The CEO’s false and deliberately misleading accusations of nurses abandoning their post is most irresponsible, inappropriate, and unprofessional behaviour of a senior public officer,” the union said in a letter to Minister of Health Dr Frank Anthony.
According to the GPSU, the allegations that the nurses were engaging in extramarital affairs are scandalous and expose the officer, his office and agency to litigation.
The letter, seen by Stabroek News, repeatedly stressed that the nurses of LHC had lost confidence in Small’s ability to effectively carry out the functions of his office and called for the minister to “take appropriate action with dispatch”.
“His irresponsible conduct is likely to cause serious disruptions in families associated with healthcare workers nationwide and increase domestic violence,” it said.
The Region Ten Regional Democratic Council (RDC) also wrote Small and asked that he step down in what it called a show of support for the region’s frontline workers and women working at the hospital.
In the letter, which was sent to Small on Thursday, the RDC said it viewed the statements which he reportedly made about the nurses at the facility as “distasteful, disrespectful, and totally untenable.” The letter further stated that the comments put hard working and committed staff at risk of domestic confrontations and discord within their homes and that in a subsequent interaction with the nurses Small did not seek to apologise but instead sought to excuse the fact that what was stated was released to the public.
