Health centre: 'You are not a resident'

A JAMAICAN living in TT said after being treated at the St James Medical Complex and being given a referral, she was turned away weeks later by the Tunapuna Health Centre, where staff told her she could not be treated because she is not a resident of TT.

Kathleen Lewis, who said she is a pending resident of TT, said, "They told me because I am not a resident I can't get through, and I should go to a private facility."

She said on the night of July 15 when she exited a PTSC bus in Chaguaramas she fell into an open hole, and suffered deep cuts to her left leg.

"It was dark and it is a really bushy area. I could not see that there was an open hole there. My foot was stuck. Painful as it was, I had to pull it out. I screamed out and the driver came out to help me. I thought my leg was broken."

She said a supervisor told the bus driver to stay with her until the ambulance came, which took an hour after it was called, Lewis said. She was taken to St James, where she was treated.

"I did X-rays and everything, then I got 14 stitches."

She was then given a referral and told she could have her stitches removed at any health centre.

"I went to St Joseph Health Centre on the morning of July 25. They told me based on where I live, I should go to Tunapuna Health Centre and I should walk with my passport."

She said when she went to Tunapuna Health Centre the following day, she was refused treatment.

"Apart from them telling me that, their attitude toward me was so bad, I wanted to cry. I was so embarrassed."

After explaining what she was told at St James and showing her referral, she was still denied treatment.

A staff member told her, she said, "'You're still not a resident of TT.' So I broke down."

She called the Ministry of Health and after explaining her situation, was told to return to the health centre .

"The lady I spoke with told me I can go back, they are expecting me."

But Lewis said when she returned to the Tunapuna Health Centre she was verbally attacked by doctors and office assistants, who told her, "You are unfair for doing that. Why did you call the ministry? This means nothing we have on the documents makes sense, we should just throw them away."

She said after enduring minutes of verbal abuse, a nurse came to her aid and removed the stitches.

Lewis has since received an e-mail from Dr Maryam Richards of the Ministry of Health, who apologised on behalf of the ministry for what happened and told Lewis the matter will be investigated as she is, in fact, not disallowed from receiving treatment by virtue of her residential status. Arrangements were also made for Lewis to have a medical review to ensure her recovery is complication-free.

"I am happy I got the help I needed," she said, "but I wanted to share the story, because if I didn't make the calls I don't know what would have happened to my leg. And I want people to know that it is not okay to treat other human beings this way."