Infection fight ‘will cost money, manpower’
Article by January 8, 2021
New anti-virus measures are being implemented at the country’s general hospital as Barbados grapples with its second wave of the coronavirus, Executive Chairman of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Juliette Bynoe-Sutherland said on Thursday.
She outlined to journalists a range of major changes to the hospital’s daily operations.
But the sheer magnitude of the measures is expected to put tremendous pressure on the hospital’s finances and manpower, hospital officials said.
Director of Medical Services Dr. Clyde Cave said: “I think you’ve figured out that this doesn’t all come cheap and I think you’ve realized that even before this [pandemic], we were in a period of financial constraints trying to improve our efficiency,
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With four people at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) testing positive for COVID-19, three of whom are staff, management is appealing to the public not to visit the institution unless absolutely necessary.
Executive chairman Juliette Bynoe-Sutherland and Acting Director of Medical Services Dr Clyde Cave confirmed the cases yesterday, with Cave giving the assurance the situation was under control.
“We have identified four people who have contracted COVID from outside in the community. They have been placed on leave and the areas in which they had worked have been sanitised.
“We have two members of our Medical Intensive Care Unit who tested positive, but all their preliminary contacts have tested negative so far and will be retested; one patient who had been identified after discharge but that situation has also been investigated and tested, and we have one support staff worker who was in indirect contact and that [situation] also has been contained,” he said
Hospital swarmed
Article by January 7, 2021
There is no need to rush the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH). The acute care facility remains well equipped to serve the public even in the face of a second wave of COVID-19.
This was the response of Executive Director Juliette Bynoe-Sutherland and Medical Services Director Dr Clyde Cave on Wednesday, after crowds turned up at the Martindale’s Road facility, forcing officials to call for police assistance to maintain order and physical distancing outside.
According to Dr Cave, persons were mainly seeking the services of the clinic and/or the pharmacy, as he likened the unusual rush on widespread panic amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.