Stop manufacturing crises – Enmore Hospital Chief to US-sanction LOO

…says Mohamed distorting newborn case for political theatre

The Administrator of the Enmore Regional Hospital, Dr Badyel Bakhsh, has rejected claims by United States (US)-sanctioned and indicted Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed about the hospital’s handling of a newborn, saying the transfer of the child was part of the public healthcare system’s referral process and not evidence of a failing health system. In a letter to the editor, Bakhsh said Mohamed’s recent commentary on the transfer of the newborn from Enmore Regional Hospital sought to create the impression that the facility did not have neonatal ventilators.
“That is simply false,” Bakhsh said. According to the hospital administrator, Enmore had neonatal ventilators at the time, but the equipment was being used to care for other critically ill babies. He said the medical team stabilised the newborn, identified available capacity elsewhere in the public health system and safely transferred the child. The child, he added, is alive and well. Bakhsh argued that the incident demonstrated the referral system functioning as intended. “No serious person should expect every hospital to have unlimited intensive-care capacity at every moment,” he said, noting that modern healthcare systems depend on networks of hospitals, specialist services, referrals and transfers. He said what matters is whether a patient is stabilised, appropriately transferred and receives the necessary care.

Accountability requires facts
Bakhsh accused Mohamed of focusing on outrage rather than the clinical realities surrounding the case. He also pointed to the record of the Enmore Regional Hospital since it opened in July 2025. According to the figures provided, the hospital has recorded 33,331 outpatient visits, 25,359 emergency visits, 4,337 admissions and 556 deliveries. The facility has also performed 125 Caesarean sections and 218 general surgeries. Its diagnostic services have included 51,583 laboratory tests, 19,073 X-rays, 2,329 CT scans and 6,035 ultrasounds. “These are not slogans. These are patients treated, mothers delivered, emergencies managed, surgeries performed and diagnostic services provided,” Bakhsh said. He said that the Government and public institutions should be subjected to scrutiny, but argued that such scrutiny must be based on facts. “There is nothing wrong with scrutinising the Government. Indeed, public officials and public institutions must be held accountable. But accountability requires facts,” he said. Bakhsh contended that presenting a clinical referral as evidence of systemic failure amounted to political theatre rather than accountability. He also expressed concern that such claims could undermine public confidence in doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers who provide services to Guyanese. The administrator said that Guyana’s healthcare system is not perfect and said no responsible Government should pretend otherwise. However, he said the system is expanding, with new hospitals being built, diagnostic capacity increasing, specialist services growing and more Guyanese receiving healthcare services closer to where they live.
“That transformation should be debated vigorously. But it should be debated on the evidence,” Bakhsh said. “Mohamed can manufacture a narrative. He cannot manufacture away the record. And on healthcare, the record speaks for itself,” he added.