With the increased abandonment of patients at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC), the administration is urging relatives of these persons to contact the hospital and collect their family members.
This was announced by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the GPHC, George Lewis, during the celebration of Social Worker’s Day. At the event, Lewis used his time at the platform to address the issue of abandonment of patients at the medical facility.
“I would like to use this forum to ask relatives and family members of patients who have been abandoned at the Georgetown Hospital to please assist the administration by coming to the hospital and collecting your relatives and caring for them,” he stated. The CEO further noted that while the GPHC primarily functions as a medium for patients to receive medical treatment, undue advantage is taken by persons who desert their family members that are suffering from a communicable disease.
“The Georgetown Hospital is a medical institution. It is not an institution that deals with abandoned patients,” he noted.
The CEO highlighted that many persons are not aware of the circumstances surrounding patients with these communicable diseases, the most popular one being Tuberculosis (TB).
“I would also like to ask relatives and family members out there to not abandon your relatives because in your opinion, they’re suffering from a communicable disease such as tuberculosis. Tuberculosis, while it may be a communicable disease, it’s also a treatable disease and many patients, when they come to this institution, after receiving medical attention, they’re cured.”
However, persons desert their loved ones because of the stigma attached, that other persons who are in close proximity to the patient can still contract the disease, but this is not the case, he added. Thus, Lewis is urging relatives of the patients to show some compassion and take their family members home.
“It is not fair to those children, who are abandoned in our wards. It is not fair to those aged persons. So please, help the administration of the Georgetown Hospital by collecting your relatives,” Lewis explained.
These are steps that the organisation is taking towards achieving their vision of providing an efficient, well-managed hospital, comparable to the “best in care, education and research”.
