Urgent concerns regarding working conditions, staffing at MCMH

Dear Hon. Prime Minister/Minister of Health,

I write to you as a deeply concerned doctor at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH). The current situation at our institution has reached a critical point, affecting not only the well-being of patients but also the morale, safety, and capacity of the staff who continue to give their best under increasingly difficult circumstances.

I wish to bring to your attention the following urgent issues:

1. Severe shortage of junior medical staff:

Each ward at MCMH is meant to have at least three junior doctors (medical officers) to ensure continuity of care and appropriate workload distribution. However, there are wards currently operating without any junior staff, forcing senior doctors to assume dual roles. This is unsustainable and places immense strain on the few remaining doctors, leading to exhaustion and an increased risk for errors in patient management.

What makes this especially troubling is that qualified medical officers remain at home, unemployed for over a year, waiting for placement within the public health system. It is difficult to understand how wards can be critically understaffed while capable, trained doctors are left idle and unpaid.

2. Inequitable and inadequate on-call compensation

Presently, junior doctors receive only EC$100 before tax for on-call duty, while senior doctors receive no compensation at all. Many of us work extensive hours — sometimes well beyond 80 hours per week, weekends and holidays — without fair remuneration. This expectation of unpaid extended labour is demoralising and unacceptable, particularly given the high stress and responsibility associated with our roles.

3. Deteriorating working conditions

The Maternity and Female Surgical Wards have become unbearable due to extreme heat. It is common to see nurses and doctors working soaked in sweat for hours on end. When this concern was raised by staff to those in authority, the response suggested that staff “put together to help themselves”. Such conditions are unsafe for both staff and patients and reflect the urgent need for basic infrastructure improvements, such as fans or air conditioning.

Given these realities, I respectfully ask:

How is it possible to plan staffing and remuneration for the new referral hospital when those currently employed at MCMH are not being adequately supported or compensated?

How will the new institution be maintained if MCMH — the nation’s primary hospital — is struggling to afford basic installations and fair pay?

When will the expectation of unpaid, overworked labour — a situation resembling modern medical servitude — finally come to an end?

We, the healthcare workers of MCMH, are not asking for luxury  — we are asking for respect, equity, and the resources necessary to deliver safe, adequate, and quality healthcare to the people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

I urge your office to review these issues urgently and initiate meaningful dialogue with the hospital administration and the Ministry of Health to develop immediate and practical solutions.

Respectfully,

Dr. Vox Medicus

The opinions presented in this content belong to the author and may not necessarily reflect the perspectives or editorial stance of iWitness News. Opinion pieces can be submitted to [email protected].