QEH to double A&E space

When the final phase of the Accident and Emergency (A&E) Department Expansion and Renovation project is completed this year, patients attending that department will see significantly reduced waiting times.

That is according to Acting Director of Medical Services at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH), Dr Clyde Cave, who explained there was currently limited availability of spaces for patient care in the A&E.

Dr Cave said once phase three of the project was completed the new A&E Department would have double the space.

His comments have come following criticisms by Senator Christopher Maynard that patients were being made to wait for long hours in the A&E even though it had undergone renovations.

“The Government has spent large sums of money on the partial rebuilding and the expansion of the A&E Department and regrettably I stood in this Chamber and I said if it was not done in a particular way we would create a very nice place to wait and unfortunately that is happening,” Maynard said during debate in the Upper House on the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Amendment Bill, 2022, last week.

However, Dr Cave told Barbados TODAY there were some situations where long wait times could not be avoided.

“It is important to note that the AED is interconnected with a much larger network of people and services around the hospital including on-call doctors from specialties such as internal medicine, and surgery, and testing services such as the laboratory and imaging studies. This means there are a lot of places where care may take more time, for e.g. a lineup for an x-ray or waiting for laboratory results.

“Additionally, when the hospital is full, there is a delay in moving admitted patients from the A&E to the ward due to the unavailability of in-patient bed spaces. This then leads to overcrowding in the A&E and reduces the number of spaces available for patient care.

“The final phase of the A&E Expansion and Renovation project, phase three, entails the reconfiguration and renovation of the past A&E to better align with the department’s current and projected needs. This phase will conclude by joining the renovated space with the new A&E building to create an 18,000 square feet A&E facility, double that of the current footprint,” Dr Cave said.

Additionally, he said the Canadian Triage and Acuity System (CTAS), which was being used in the A&E, meant persons with non-life threatening injuries or sicknesses, were not dealt with as a priority.

Dr Cave encouraged those persons to utilize the services of the 24-hour Winston Scott Polyclinic.

“This system known as triage is the initial assessment of all patients by a doctor or nurse, following which patients are categorized from life threatening to non-urgent and prioritized for treatment based on the severity of their condition. Unfortunately, patients in categories 3 through 5 often experience extended wait times as resources are directed to the treatment of critically ill patients first.

“As such, if your condition is not urgent, we strongly encourage you to visit the 24-hour fast track service at the Winston Scott Polyclinic, your nearest polyclinic or family doctor for care…Utilizing these options will allow the A&E to better direct its resources towards the care of critically-ill patients with life threatening and urgent conditions,” Dr Cave said.
randybennett@barbadostoday.bb