Although much of his allotted 45 minutes was taken up with fingering the government’s apparent lack of financial allocations and policy framework support for its purported social obligations, Senator Israel Bruce spared some time to present the health care concerns of residents of the South Central Windward constituency.
“Mr Speaker I was really hoping that as he addressed the issues of clinics, for example, that requires the attention of his Ministry that certain clinics would have come in for attention and mentioning at least.”
Bruce acknowledged that “the Doreen John Health Centre in Greiggs has been identified” by Health Minister Luke Browne amongst several other clinics that would be worked upon. Though he hastened to highlight to the House that his previously raised question as to the current condition of the Lowmans Windward clinic is yet to be addressed.
“Woodlice infestation, no sleep in nurse as a consequence of that,” Senator Bruce tabled. He rhetorically queried the impact of not having access to a live-in nurse at the health facility that serves the Hadley’s Village, Higher and Lower Lowmans, Lauders and to some extent North Union communities.
“The Honourable Minister said earlier on when he made reference to the medical complex in Georgetown… certain interventions were done …he said… if the person was to be brought into Kingstown then there’s a likelihood that the person would not have made it,” Bruce submitted as the premise on which he based his underlying apprehension. “I have a similar concern when there is not a live-in nurse at the Lowmans clinic – Lowmans Windward that is.” He further illustrated his point with an example of a potential injury worsening due to the want of an on-call nurse at the facility. “In the absence of that live-in nurse then we’re exposing the people of Lauders, Higher and Lower Lowmans and Hadley’s Village if something like that happens.”
Bruce then implored Health Minister Browne to “engage his other Parliamentary colleagues” [to] look carefully at finding some resources to attend to the problem at the Lowmans Windward clinic.
He applauded the Health Minister’s forthrightness for reporting to the House that he had “gone in person and done the necessary legwork” to confirm reports of the leaky roof at the Diamonds clinic. “One would have hoped that the Honourable Minister would have found it important, again, to ensure that this facility was the beneficiary of some renovation or remediation so that the leaking issue at the clinic in Diamonds could be resolved… it may require your involving BRAGSA and ask the BRAGSA people to go in there, identify the problem and resolve it 123….”
Senator Bruce supposed “it is not something that the Ministry cannot do and they have to dig far to go and find the resources to do it. I notice in the Estimates there are two line items under the Prime Minister’s Office one for just over two million dollars and another for two point eight million dollars. One is miscellaneous grants and works and the other one is for small projects across the country… I am sure that both the Diamonds Clinic and the Lowmans Clinic could find resources out of either of those two line items in the Prime Minister’s Office to make sure that the Honourable Minister of Health is responding to the needs of the people….”
One is miscellaneous grants and works and the other one is for small projects across the country… I am sure that both the Diamonds Clinic and the Lowmans Clinic could find resources out of either of those two line items in the Prime Minister’s Office to make sure that the Honourable Minister of Health is responding to the needs of the people….”
Bruce also tabled the “very onerous burden” faced by people living in Chapmans, New Grounds and New Adelphi “to find a [close enough] health facility to address basic health issues.”
“I see no reason why this government cannot and should not give worthy consideration to acquiring a small parcel of land be it in New Grounds, or New Adelphi or Chapmans, either of those locations would serve the three communities well, and have constructed for the benefit of these residents a small clinic to provide basic services for them. I am going on record today to ask the Honourable Ministers of Health, Finance and presumably Transport and Works, Mr Speaker, if they could sit and again put their heads together and eek out from the budget as presented somewhere we could find a small parcel of land and put in place a small clinic for the people of New Grounds, New Adelphi and Chapmans,” Senator Bruce concluded.
I am going on record today to ask the Honourable Ministers of Health, Finance and presumably Transport and Works, Mr Speaker, if they could sit and again put their heads together and eek out from the budget as presented somewhere we could find a small parcel of land and put in place a small clinic for the people of New Grounds, New Adelphi and Chapmans,” Senator Bruce concluded.
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