Deyalsingh puts son, daughter on notice: "I'm ready for grandchildren"

HEALTH Minister Terrence Deyalsingh wants to be a grandfather. But to this end, he jokingly said, “my children sticking.”

Deyalsingh made these comments after visiting new mothers at Mt Hope Women’s Hospital and the Port of Spain General Hospital (PoSGH) yesterday. A total of five babies were born at both hospitals on Christmas Day, three babies at Mt Hope and two babies at PoSGH.

Speaking with reporters at Mt Hope, with a Santa Claus hat on his head, Deyalsingh said, “When you see me with these babies here, I’m looking for grand kids.” He said he has told his son and daughter, “if allyuh don’t give me grandchildren, I will make my own.”

Asked if this was no idle threat, Deyalsingh laughed and said, “That ain’t no idle threat. I put them on notice. I will make my own grandchildren.” He said it has been an absolute joy for him to meet new mothers on Christmas day and hear them praise the public health care system.

Deyalsingh said he was tickled pink when he met new mother Jenise Guerra at Mt Hope. “Every year for four years now I have been begging a mother to name their baby after me, either as a first name or as a middle name,” Deyalsingh said.

He added, “Today is the closest I have gotten. She (Jenise) said she will consider naming her newborn son Terrence as a middle name.”

Deyalsingh told reporters, “I’m getting closer. Next year is my last year to cement this wish." He said, “If it’s a girl it could be Terri. Because my daughter’s middle name is Terri. My son’s middle name is Terrence. I can feel it.”

Recalling that one of his priorities upon assuming office was to reduce the country’s mortality rate to developed nation status, Deyalsingh said, “When I came, it was in double digits.”

Developed nation status, Deyalsingh explained, meant “We should have no more than four to six maternal deaths per annum given the fact that we had between 17,000 to 18,000 deliveries per year.” He said this standard was achieved in 2016 and 2017.

Deyalsingh said so far for the year, there have been only two maternal deaths. He empathised with those families. Deyalsingh said his presence at the hospitals was also to express solidarity with the doctors and nurses who are on call even on public holidays.

“We don’t celebrate the good news, we just celebrate the bacchanal and the sordid details,” Deyalsingh said. He observed, “It is depressing for health care workers when wrong information reaches the public domain and reaches the media.”

Deyalsingh said it is regrettable that some sections of the media are “ready to assume the worst” when covering stories about the health sector. At Mt Hope and PoSGH, Deyalsingh gave hampers to each of the new mothers, chatted with them and briefly held their babies in his arms. All the mothers said they were happy with the quality of care they received at the hospitals and eager to take their babies home.