Situation handled in an “immature, bad” manner – Councillor

Missing drugs at Suddie Hospital

Chairman of the Region Two Health and Sanitation Committee, PPP Councillor Arnold Adams, has said he is most peeved at the way the Public Health Ministry (MPH) handled the matter concerning the missing drugs at the Suddie Public Hospital.
Speaking at the statutory meeting held late last week in the boardroom of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) building, Adams said the MPH dealt with the matter in a manner that was “very immature and bad”.

He said that, as Chairman of the Health and Sanitation Committee and as a regional councillor, he was at no time informed about the ministerial task force’s visit to the hospital. And at no time was Regional Chairman Daveanand Ramdatt or Regional Health Officer Afarah Khan informed about the visit.
He said regional officials learnt through the media that drugs were missing from the hospital; and having launched an investigation into the matter, discovered that medications were never uplifted from the MPH drug bond at Diamond, East Bank Demerara.
He said he is very peeved at the way staff members at the health facility were labelled.
Adams explained that no special arrangements are normally made from the regional level to secure the drugs. He said staff members are usually sent to uplift the drugs, and have to hurry to reach the return ferry on time; because if they miss the ferry or get caught in closures at the bridge, they would “be left on their own”, since no overtime or special allowances are given to those who transport the drugs or are in charge of the drugs in transit.

Since the incident involving missing drugs, Adams said, he has recommended that a special transport and staff be assigned to uplift the drugs.
He noted he was very disappointed in the way the Public Health Ministry’s press release was structured, because it has tarnished the reputation of the staff.
Region Two Chairman Daveanand Ramdatt has also said he was not informed about the incident, and learnt of it via the media. He said the way staff members were labelled has tarnished their careers, and the region’s personnel department should deal with the situation very carefully.
An ambulance driver and two pharmacists attached to the Suddie Public Hospital in Region Two have each been placed on $20,000 station bail for allegedly stealing pharmaceutical drugs. The trio had earlier contended that the drugs were signed for, but the team did not record each item.
According to a police report, simple larceny involving tablets and injections to the total value of $237,400 has allegedly been committed on the Public Health Ministry at Suddie Hospital between March 21 and 22.
A press release issued by the Public Health Ministry in March has stated that the Guyana Police Force is investigating an allegation of theft at the Suddie Public Hospital following a visit by the Ministerial Task Force.
During the Task Force’s one-day visit to Region Two (Pomeroon/Supenaam) health institutions, several other irregularities were unearthed.  In one instance, the report stated that a pharmacist at the hospital could not account for several ampules of pethidine, codine and morphine.
The team also found instances in which the stock of narcotic drugs either could not be accounted for, or the pharmacist had extra drugs that were still not recorded as prescribed under the law.  (Indrawattie Natram)