THE EDITOR, Sir:

On March 8, 2007, my life made a change for the worst. My mother was told they found a tumour in her brain. My family and I were devastated, but we all tried to be strong and support her. Her surgery to test if this tumour was cancerous or not (a biopsy) was done on Tuesday, April 3, 2007, at University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI). I remember watching her as they rolled her into the operating theatre at 1:00 p.m. that afternoon. Hours passed and no one could tell us the status of her surgery Was it halfway through? Was it going well so far? No one could tell us anything!

They sent me all over the place. They told me to go to nurses administration and when I went they told me the same thing: "Brain surgery can take hours and you will be contacted as soon as she is out." It wasn't until 10:00 p.m. that we got a call from the neurosurgeon telling us that the surgery went well! The next morning we saw her in the intensive care unit, and the nurses said she was doing well and could go back on the ward as soon as she gained more strength, and a bed was available. A few days later she was back on the ward.

This is where the nightmare really started. The neglect and ill-treatment that my mother went through on the ward was horrendous! It wasn't only to my mother but other patients as well! In one instance, one of the interns inserted the IV in my mother's hand and the next day it was swollen, as he didn't insert it properly in her vein. This happened again about a week later. One night I opted to stay a little past the visiting hours and helped to feed her as she was too weak to feed herself. Then the nurses called the security to run my family and told us she was not on the list of 'critically ill' patients so we needed to leave. Most of the nurses were extremely harsh, showed no consideration and were constantly ignoring us if we needed help.

Cconstant physiotherapy

She was recovering quite well during the three weeks, until she suddenly developed pneumonia and a pulmonary embolism (a blood clot that had spread to her lung) while on the ward. Patients who are bedridden need constant physiotherapy to overcome this, however, we were told that in the entire hospital, only two physiotherapists were available! On, April 24, 2007, around 6:00 p.m., I arrived at the hospital only to see the doctors around her bed and the curtains pulled with the doctor calling her name while squeezing the oxygen bag to give her air. She lay there flat on the bed with her eyes closed and gave no response whatsoever … It was then that I knew she was gone. I stood there in shock, and the anger and frustration from everything that happened on the ward accumulated inside me. They told us they couldn't rush her to the ICU earlier because there were no beds! By then it was too late, and my mother, only 53, was gone.

I am writing this letter as a plea to the new Government and the Ministry of Health to improve the care and services given to patients and their families in hospitals. In a case of emergency, Kingston Public Hospital and UHWI are the two places doctors recommend, since they are said to have the equipment to handle such matters. Why is there ALWAYS a shortage of beds? Why are interns not monitored when practising on patients? The problems in the health care system are ongoing, and we hear them in the news everyday! Anyone of us could end up in the hospital tomorrow because of an emergency and, due to the improper care and facilities, the outcome might be detrimental!

I am, etc.,

K. ABISDID

kamz3@hotmail.com

Kingston 8