Prominent singer Jan Keiser, the daughter of renowned songstress Carlyn Leacock, has appealed for public support following costly hip replacement surgery in Lithuania.

The former Spice and Company lead singer who is a central member of the praise team at the First Baptist Church underwent the procedure to address injuries stemming from a near-fatal car accident several decades ago.

Her uncle, Pastor Paul Leacock, told Barbados TODAY that the collision, which involved a lorry overtaking another vehicle and colliding with Keiser’s car, left her with lasting physical trauma that eventually necessitated the operation.

“Not one to remain quiet for long, Jan looks forward to returning to ministering on Sundays at her First Baptist Church and at all the other forums where she performs occasionally,” Pastor Leacock said.

To assist with significant medical expenses and ongoing therapy costs, a benefit concert, For the Love of Jan, will be held on Saturday at 6.30 p.m., at the First Baptist Church on Constitution Road. Admission is free and attendees are encouraged to donate generously.

The event will feature performances from numerous artists, including Tamara Marshall, Paula Hinds, ZigE Walcott, Pastor Leacock, and the First Baptist chorale and liturgical dancers.

The concert organisers hope the community will rally behind Keiser, described as “one of the beloved members of the Leacock clan of singers”, as she recovers and aims to resume her musical activities.

Now back home recuperating, Keiser said she was surprised that several other Barbadians have had surgeries at the same facility she attended in Lithuania.

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Several areas in St Michael and St James will be sprayed by the Ministry of Health’s Vector Control Unit this week, as it seeks to eliminate mosquito breeding sites.

The Unit will focus on St Michael for the first four days of the week.

On Monday it will target Henry Dunant Road,1st to 3rd North Friendship Drive, Friendship Terrace, 1st to 3rd Lowland Drive, Green Hill Main Road, Mahaica Gap, Storey Gap, Lewis Gap, and surrounding districts.

The following day the team will fog Small Land, Green Hill Main Road, Green Hill Nos. 1 to 4, Eden Lodge, Lakes Close, Johnson Land, Sorrel Lane, Middle Lane, White Hall Road, Medford Road, White Hall Nos.1 to 3, White Hall Terrace, White Hall Main Road, and environs.

Communities including Austin Drive Nos. 1 to 7, Eden Lodge Housing Area, Lodge Hill, Emerald Drive, Sapphire Drive, Garnet Drive, Topaz Drive, Lodge Hill Terrace, Pearl Drive, and Peach Court will be targeted on Wednesday.

On Thursday the Unit will visit Lodge Crescent, Lodge Hill, Rock Dundo Heights, Well Gap Nos. 1 to 4, Rock Dundo Park with avenues, White Hall Main Road, and Sunny Side Garden.

The fogging exercise for the week will conclude on Friday in St James, in the following districts: Hoytes Village, Canewood Road, Bagatelle Terrace with avenues, and Hoytes Terrace.

Fogging takes place from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. daily. Householders are reminded to open their windows and doors to allow the spray to enter.

Members of the public are advised that the completion of scheduled fogging activities may be affected by events beyond the Unit’s control. In such circumstances, the Unit will return to communities affected in the soonest possible time.

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Staff at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital laboratory staged a walkout on Friday in protest against severe health hazards in their working environment.

The action follows years of complaints about perilous and unacceptable conditions that have persisted despite repeated appeals for improvement.

“The laboratory staff has been extremely patient and long-suffering,” Deputy General Secretary of the National Union of Public Workers (NUPW)

Wayne Walrond told Barbados TODAY. “For several years, the staff . . . have been plagued with environmental problems.”

He said these issues have led to serious health complications among the staff, including acute respiratory ailments.

“Some workers would have experienced coughing with blood, and workers have been extremely distressed by the discomfort caused by the presence of mould,” the union official disclosed.

The QEH laboratory is not just an ageing facility but one that has become increasingly unfit for purpose, Walrond declared.

While management has made attempts to address the situation through interim measures such as cleaning, these efforts have proven insufficient. “The cleaning will have to be even more frequent if staff are to continue to function in the interim,” he stressed.

Walrond has called for the fast-tracking of a new facility, a project that has been in discussion for several years but has yet to materialise.

“It’s a matter of the situation with the lab and having to have proper accommodation,” he stated. “This must be dealt with as a matter of urgency.”

The NUPW official emphasised that the current state of the laboratory is untenable, and it is critical for the health and safety of the staff that a new, suitable facility be built as soon as possible.

A meeting with QEH management has been scheduled to discuss the matter further.

“The union will lend support to staff in any representation that would be required and will make itself available for the meeting,” Walrond said.

He pointed out that the issues faced by the QEH laboratory are part of a larger problem affecting many buildings, both old and new, across the island. Walrond called for a comprehensive discussion with various stakeholders, including builders, environmentalists, health professionals, and labour representatives, to focus on the design and construction of buildings in Barbados.

The NUPW deputy general secretary further called for a more proactive approach to safety and health.

Walrond stressed the need for comprehensive safety and health policies across both the public and private sectors and advocated for safety and health practices to be integrated into personal lives.

“Safety and health are our business on the job and off the job,” he said, urging a more holistic approach to living a safe and healthy life.

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Corporate Communications Specialist at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Shane Sealy told Barbados TODAY that operations had resumed as usual yesterday evening as there had been “very, very minor damage” at the Martindales Road facility and most had already been addressed.

“Once the national shutdown was discontinued and the all-clear was given, we resumed normal services and visiting hours from six o’clock. Meanwhile, our clinics will open as normal (today) as well as our pharmacies,” he said.

Sealy also advised those patients whose surgeries or appointments were postponed due to the passage of the weather system to contact the hospital’s Patient Advice and Liaison Service at 536-4800 to be rescheduled.

“We are getting things back on track and we want them to reach out to us so we could let them know what to do,” he added.

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CEO of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) Neil Clark has assured that patients and staff at the public hospital are safe amid the passage of Hurricane Beryl.

Speaking on CBC a short while ago, he said the QEH had survived the worst of the Category 3 hurricane, with only a few minor leaks reported.

“I’ve walked around last night, I’ve walked around the different departments and units; it feels very calm and the wind has been quite kind to us so far. It’s been a little bit rougher now this morning, it’s picking up a little bit. We’ve had a few minor leaks but no major damage or no major incident at all. We’re keeping the patients safe, we’re keeping the staff safe, we’re feeding everybody and we’re looking after everybody,” he assured.

“So if you’re at home and you’re worried about your patients or your family members who might be staff, please be assured everything is calm and under control at the hospital.”

Clark confirmed that clinics and theatres for elective surgery remain closed today. He said the aim is to have those reopen from tomorrow.

“As soon as we get the all clear, we’ll review the facilities and the aim would be to allow the outpatient clinics and the theatres to recommence tomorrow. But we’ll have to check the facilities. It will be dependent on the all clear time and we’ll be communicating later on today if that’s the plan that we’ll be bringing the patients back in for clinics and theatres on Tuesday,” the hospital CEO said.

According to Clark, a few patients had turned up at the Accident and Emergency Department during the passage of Hurricane Beryl but the department was “quite calm”.

“I’ve have been down to meet the team. It’s a nice change for them to have that calmness, to catch up with the patients who were in the department before the hurricane started and to move through those patients and to prepare us, I suppose, for after the lockdown is [discontinued] and the patients maybe want to come back out. We should be ready to receive any patients as soon as there’s a need to do that,” he said.

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To facilitate this, the hospital pharmacy is extending opening hours Saturday, June 29, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., and it will also be open on Sunday, June 30 from 8:30 p.m. to 2 p.m., the QEH said in a statement.

Patients who have already placed orders through the Medication Delivery Service will have their medication delivered over the weekend.

Further information is available at the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS/Help Desk) at 536-4800 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., via regular or WhatsApp calls.

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Tony Gibbs, who conducted a vulnerability study of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) in 1998, told Barbados TODAY that the hospital remains insufficiently safe, particularly regarding fire protection and roofing and suspended floor slabs.

But the QEH top brass countered that a recent PAHO Safe Hospital study index gave the state-owned healthcare facility a B rating.

 “The index is the result of an all-encompassing study, which includes a review of fire potential and fire protection systems,” Chief Executive Officer Neil Clark told Barbados TODAY.

The 600-bed Martindale’s Road facility, which replaced the General Hospital after 120 years, marks its 60th anniversary in November.

Gibbs revealed that his 1998 study had proposed short-term measures to be implemented within 12 months, at an estimated cost of $1 million.

“They did nothing,” he said, expressing frustration at the lack of action. “The short-term measures would have cost in 1998, $1 million; not more than that.”

Respected Structural Engineer Tony Gibbs. (FP)

Gibbs, 86, who was awarded the Companion of Honour in 2020 for his contributions to engineering in Barbados and the Caribbean, said that while some structural changes have been made since the hospital’s opening, most of the building remains in its original state.

“The focus of the study was a vulnerability analysis to see how safe the building is. It is not safe enough,” Gibbs stated.

He explained that while the steel frame is protected and would not collapse in a fire, major safety issues persist with the floors.

The engineer highlighted concerns about the SB slabs, made from Barbados clay, steel and concrete, which were popularly used when the hospital was built.

“That floor system is all over the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. There have been failures there. There have been failures there even in recent times,” he said, noting that these involve clay blocks spontaneously breaking and falling.

“So, I have written about that in 1998, and nothing has been done about it. They still have those SB blocks on the floors of the QEH.”

Gibbs cited similar failures in other Barbadian buildings, including banks, schools and warehouses. He recounted a particularly alarming incident at Victoria Hospital in Saint Lucia where roof slabs failed in a paediatric ward shortly after it had been evacuated due to plumbing issues.

The structural expert also pointed out fire safety deficiencies at the QEH, including a lack of fire doors for compartmentalisation and an absence of sprinklers on the wards.

“I think people will die if there is a fire in that hospital,” he warned. “But things can be done about it.”

Gibbs, who designed the Tom Adams Financial Centre housing the Central Bank of Barbados, noted that while the original 1964 structure forms the bulk of the QEH, there have been some additions.

“There have been some additions since then which probably are as good as the 1964 building,” he noted, referring to newer sections like the Lions Eye Care Centre and an extension on the western side.

But these additions do little to reduce the overall fire risk, according to the engineer.

He stressed that modern hospital design standards emphasise building facilities that eliminate the need for evacuation during fires.

This is typically achieved through a combination of sprinklers, compartmentalisation, and careful selection of construction materials.

“The Queen Elizabeth Hospital needs some work done for fire protection. The wards are not separated with fire doors, so you can’t compartmentalise the Queen Elizabeth Hospital,” Gibbs explained.

“We can reasonably be talking about installing sprinklers which would be expensive, but not as expensive as human lives. And we could compartmentalise it. You could do horizontal evacuation from the area which is on fire to another part of the same floor which is not on fire.”

Drawing on his extensive experience assessing Caribbean hospitals for the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), Gibbs expressed surprise that even newer hospitals in the region, such as the Mount St John’s Medical Centre in Antigua, have incorporated necessary fire safety features like fire-rated doors, smoke detectors and sprinkler systems.

“So, even a Third World country can do it; must do it,” he said.

But while the QEH’s Chief Executive said management accepted that the hospital’s infrastructure is dated, he drew attention to the PAHO study and other mitigating measures to improve safety at the medical facility.

“It is important to note that the Pan-American Health Organisation conducts periodic assessments on hospitals regionally and in September 2023, the agency conducted its Safe and Green Assessment at the QEH,” Clark said.

 “From this most recent assessment, PAHO’s Safe Hospital Index rating for the QEH is a B. 

“In addition to this, the QEH routinely conducts inspection and maintenance programmes, and simulation exercises to test the hospitals preparedness and response to incidents that may arise as a consequence of the facilities’ age.” 

The hospital boss, who has been on the job since March, stated that almost a year ago, the QEH’s fire response mechanisms were tested and its teams, with assistance from the Barbados Fire Service, were able to contain the situation.

Clark also suggested that the concerns highlighted by structural engineer Gibbs could also be resolved by building a new hospital.

“While these mitigation measures and contingencies have been established across the QEH to protect patients and staff, there is acknowledgement from management that a new hospital with modern design would also address the concerns raised by Mr Gibbs,” the CEO declared. 

emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb

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The Ministry of Health and Wellness reported on Monday that for the diarrhoeal samples tested, three samples from late May and early June showed the presence of rotavirus, in addition to the bacterial foodborne pathogens that have been previously identified.

The uptick in cases in persons older than five years moved from 34 at the end of April, to 76 cases in the week ending May 11. Since then, weekly numbers have been falling, most recently to 46 cases in the week ending June 15, but are still above the alert threshold. At this time of the year, the alert level for this age group is fewer than eight cases.

In children under five years old, the number of cases moved from eight for the week ending April 27, to 27 cases in the week ending May 18.

Rotavirus is a very contagious agent spread by contact with objects or persons contaminated with infected stool. Vomiting was a prominent symptom for many persons, according to health authorities.

Members of the public are urged to employ proper hand hygiene methods such as washing their hands regularly, especially before eating, and to continue to be cautious when purchasing ready-to-eat food items.

(BGIS)

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The Commission, in its effort to reach various segments of the population, through the theme “A Healthier Barbados, A Healthier Me”, engaged young people in a polo shirt design competition. Some 40 submissions were received from students from primary and secondary schools, both public and private, and The UWI.

The initiative builds on the implementation of the National School Nutrition Policy, by supporting the expansion of the health message across and throughout the school environments.

Entrants were judged by members of the NCD Commission in two rounds, with final tailoring by a Graphic Artist of B3 Imaging, who printed the polo shirts.

Thuo won two day passes for two persons each, to the Sam Lord’s Castle Wyndham Grand Resort. Second and third-place winners were Brooklyn Mascoll of the St Alban’s Primary School and Hayley Scott of Christ Church Foundation School, respectively. They received prizes of one day pass for two persons each, to the Sam Lord’s Castle Wyndham Grand Resort.

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A number of communities in St James and St Thomas will be fogged this week, when the Ministry of Health’s Vector Control Unit conducts its mosquito reduction exercise.

The Unit will concentrate its efforts in St James for the first three days of the week. On Monday, Wanstead Gardens, Husbands Heights, Santa Rosa Drive, Mid-Summer Drive, and Dracaena Avenue will be targeted.

The team will then go into Dairy Meadows Road, John Plains, St John The Baptist Road, and Bamboo Ridge, on Tuesday,.

The following day the Unit will spray Hoytes Village, Cavewood Road, Bagatelle Terrace with Avenues, and Hoytes Terrace. On Thursday, Center Lane, Kew Road, and Redman Village in St Thomas will be visited.

The fogging exercise will conclude on Friday in Welches, Welches Heights, Plum Tree Avenue, Terrace Drive, Padmore Village, and surrounding districts.

Fogging takes place from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. daily. Householders are reminded to open their windows and doors to allow the spray to enter. Children should not be allowed to play in the spray.

Members of the public are advised that the completion of scheduled fogging activities may be affected by events beyond the Unit’s control. In such circumstances, the Unit will return to communities affected in the soonest possible time. (PR)

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