Scarborough Hospital Radiology Department Dysfunctional

Several workers from the Radiology Department of the Scarborough General Hospital, who were given suspension letters by the Tobago Regional Health Authority (TRHA are now in limbo about their situation. One of the workers contacted Tobago News about their plight last week claiming that following protest action by the workers over a number of health and safety issues at Radiology Department of the old hospital at the Fort, the THRA suspended three of the workers.

“It is over six months now since we were suspended, yet we have not heard again from the TRHA about when our matters would be dealt with,” related the worker. No tribunal has been set up by the TRHA to investigate our cases,” added the worker. The worker pointed out that since the relocation of the hospital from the Fort to the new hospital at Signal Hill the new Radiology Department has been plagued with a number of serious issues. “There is no printer for the X-rays, so the hospital has been outsourcing this service to the Calder Hall Medical Center,” charged the worker. Just recently, a Senior Radiologist resigned from the department. This could have a very serious effect on the quality of service as junior staff needs supervision there,” declared the source. Tobago News received a distressed call from a patient recently, who complaining bitterly about doing an internal ultra sound at the new hospital. 

When I took the report to the doctor, it was rejected,” she cried. Can you imagine how it feels to go through a process like that for nothing? It is as if my body was violated as the procedure is an invasive one,” declared the aggrieved patient. Tobago News contacted a medical doctor at the hospital, who confirmed the action. The medic insisted that protocols demanded that junior staff doing such procedures must be under the supervision of a senior officer. “Sadly, the whole radiology department is dysfunctional,” declared the source. 

Contacted on these issues last Tuesday, Secretary of Health and Social Services Claudia Groome-Duke assured that all human resource matters would be discussed next week Thursday. “I will be out of the country from May 3 to 7, so on my return I will be dealing with these issues,” she stated.

Source:Thetobagonews