Administrative health officials in the Ministry of Health have known about the drug-resistant bacterium, Carbapenem-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB), since July, says opposition Senator Carlos James.
He said on Tuesday that, based on information passed to him, officials first became aware of the issue on July 17.
James said that he was not blaming the medical staff at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH) but the administrative staff — the hospital administrator, the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Health, the health minister and the Cabinet.
On Monday, the Ministry of Health, Wellness, Environmental Health and Energy issued a press release stating that contact tracing had begun and that elective surgeries were being restricted after the drug-resistant bacterium was found at the MCMH.
“The question to ask is why is this now coming to the public by way of a press release from the Ministry of Health on Aug. 10 when I am reliably informed that officials in the Ministry of Health knew about this outbreak since July 17,” James said.
“That is the part that is concerning to me,” he added.
James did not say when he was allegedly informed that the Health Ministry had known about the situation since July 17.
The release indicated that health workers were trying to implement control practices to reduce infection.
However, the senator said he wanted to know why this information was now being released to the public.
“I am hoping that the information I have is incorrect, but health officials have informed me that this was something known to the Ministry of Health.”
He maintained that his information was that administrative health officials had known since July.
“And if that is the case, it is quite concerning,” he said.
Contact tracing meant that health practitioners were now leaving MCMH and going into communities and homes, the senator said, adding that this also meant the outbreak had already left the hospital and spread into communities throughout the country.
And if that was the case, then the outbreak did not occur within the past few hours, James said.
“It is troubling that this came to the attention of the health officials since July; it is quite concerning that all we can see from the Ministry of Health is a press release, not a press conference, which is what is expected and needed at this time,” James said.
The health officials ought to reach the people through the media and provide detailed information about the situation and the strategy going forward, James said.
He said there are specific things that the public ought to know, for example, the number of persons with underlying issues who are susceptible to the drug-resistant bacteria, whether any related deaths have occurred, which he admitted may be challenging since people may have succumbed to the underlying medical conditions and not the bacteria.
“This is where the issue of transparency comes in,” James said.
The outbreak has already left the hospital, and there may be individuals who are seriously affected and unaware of it.
He, however, said he was aware of the MCMH staff’s capacity, adding that he was confident they would be able to contain the outbreak.
“So, I do not want people to get alarmed by what they are hearing now.”
But he wanted to know if the administrative staff had been transparent in saying that the situation warranted an “all hands on deck” approach.
“It is not just a health issue, but a national issue,” he said.
The public needed more information about the bacteria itself, and he was calling on the Ministry of Health to come to the people and provide it.
“It is only the responsible thing to do,” he said.