Jamaica’s COVID-19 cases increased by 66 on Thursday, creating an additional burden on public-health workers as doctors from one hospital have described working conditions as “untenable”.
In a letter addressed to the Jamaica Medical Doctors Association, the internal medicine resident body at the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) says that buckling health services have had a debilitating impact on patient care.
“As the number of COVID positive cases continues to rise, these working conditions have become more burdensome and unrealistic and have set up our colleagues for burnout, increased risk of succumbing to the virus, and, unfortunately, literal collapse,” the group said.
The doctors disclosed that a staffer collapsed on the COVID ward from exhaustion after hours of standing while attending to infected and isolated patients. They also alleged that there have been delays in patient care because of insufficient staff and resources to assist with intubation or to operate mechanical ventilators.
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