DLP demands details about skin infection outbreak at Geriatric Hospital

The Democratic Labour Party (DLP) is demanding full disclosure from the Ministry of Health regarding the outbreak of a contagious skin infection at the Geriatric Hospital, after health officials confirmed earlier this week that several cases of infection were detected.

In calling for transparency over the infection’s spread at the Beckles Road, St Michael facility and the number of people affected, DLP spokesman on Health and Wellness, Senator Andre Worrell, blamed the government for allowing what he deemed a preventable situation to escalate.

Worrell, in a statement issued on Thursday, demanded that the Ministry of Health release all internal information relating to the incident, including a timeline of events, records of staffing levels and supply shortages, and details of any related budget cuts.

Chief Medical Officer Dr Kenneth George has said the matter is being clinically managed and that investigations are ongoing.

However, no figures have been released on how many patients or staff members were infected, and no details have been provided about the type of infection involved or its origin.

Worrell said such silence is unacceptable since families with relatives in care deserve transparency and accountability.

“Our most vulnerable citizens and their families deserve nothing less than a full, unvarnished account of how this crisis was permitted to develop,” he said.

He also challenged the Minister of Health and Wellness to explain his past statements in Parliament that the country’s hospitals were “fully resourced.”

Worrell said if the minister cannot demonstrate that those claims were accurate, then “he has no choice but to resign.”

Describing the situation as scandalous and one that “did not arise by accident,” Worrell charged that the outbreak at the Geriatric Hospital was the result of years of underfunding, warnings by professionals being ignored, and persistent shortages of protective equipment and essential medicines.

He urged the government to stop deflecting and take responsibility for systemic failures that put lives at risk.

The DLP is also calling for an independent Commission of Inquiry, chaired by an impartial jurist, to investigate the circumstances surrounding the outbreak and make its findings public.

Worrell said this must be accompanied by the release of all health inspection reports from the past five years and the introduction of whistle-blower protections for staff who come forward with safety concerns.

As part of broader reforms, the party is also proposing the creation of a Geriatric Care Fund with dedicated budget lines, along with binding national standards for infection control across all long-term care facilities.

Worrell said rather than blame frontline workers, the government must address the deeper issues that left the hospital vulnerable, charging, “The prime minister and the ministers of health must answer these charges—or face the judgement of the Barbadian people.”

(SM)