Bandits strike on hospital ward

FEAR is running rampant among both patients and staff at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EWMSC) in Mt Hope after two wards were broken into by bandits on Tuesday night.

Two intruders broke into the adult surgical ward two and stole sleeping patients' cell phones and other valuable personal items. They were busy rummaging through patients' bags and the pockets of their clothing when the lone nurse on duty walked into the ward for her routine inspection round when she discovered them.

The nurse ran screaming for help on the third floor as there was no security present on the second floor. By the time she returned, the thieves had locked the ward's door from the inside and as patients who were awakened by the nurse's screams, watched in stunned silence, the intruders escaped by removing some louvres on the other side of the ward. It was later discovered that the hospital's cardiology ward two was also broken into.

Sources at the hospital said there has been a spate of robberies and break-ins at the facility over the past few months and the repeated cries of both the nursing staff and doctors for better security were not heeded by those in authority. "Maybe if someone is murdered during one of these break-ins then something will be done," a source said.

"This is ridiculous. Just imagine at nights there are no security guards on any of the wards. During the night the back entrance of the wards are locked and medical personnel use the front entrance. These thieves knew their way about the hospital and knew enough to remove the louvres to enter and lock the front door, when they were discovered, in order to escape.

"There was another incident where a doctor was sleeping in the doctor's restroom when someone tried to break in. We suspect the person could have been a patient because someone described him as having an arm cast. But what is a patient doing in the corridor at 3 am going into the doctors' restroom? And there is no security around to question them."

The source who asked that he not be named said that over the past four or five months there were four break-ins in the car park where the windows of doctors' vehicles were smashed and items stolen. Worst yet, these happened in broad daylight. One doctor fell victim to this form of criminality twice.

"There is not a single security guard in the doctors' carpark and they park there at all hours. It is just unsafe. When doctors and nurses have to walk these corridors late at night, anybody could pull them into an empty room and do anything with them, because there is no security," he said.

The source said the previous security had been replaced by some "indistinct security with no proper uniform, just some orange jersey." When contacted yesterday for a response, Medical Chief of Staff Dr Malachy Ojuro referred Newsday to the hospital's communications department.