Minister Chebat Says Barrow Administration Had No Clear Plan to Address COVID-19

Michel Chebat

According to Minister Chebat, under former Minister of Health Pablo Marin and Prime Minister Dean Barrow, there was no clear plan to address the COVID-19 pandemic.  He says that there was no clear testing strategy, revealing that there is a backlog of more than two thousand samples waiting to be processed at the Central Medical Laboratory.  This means that the figures shared on the infographic do not reflect the real-time situation on the ground as there might be hundreds of unrecorded active cases countrywide.  Chebat says that the Ministry of Health rejected BAHA’s proposal to assist with the PCR testing.  He says that regional hospitals are unprepared to deal with a surge in cases.  Minister Chebat also revealed that there are limited masks and P.P.E.s for healthcare workers and no clear strategic plan with a budget.

Michel Chebat, Minister of Health and Wellness

“As you know we assumed office a little over a week ago and this is what we found. There was no clear strategic plan with a budget. There were no clear testing strategies. Up to the end of July M.O.H. headquarters was still deciding who got tested. The processing of swabs for PCR was and is still centralized. This has resulted in a serious backlog. Currently there is a backlog of approximately two thousand one hundred and eighty two PCRs at the Central Lab waiting to be processed. People being tested are not being given their results in time. This has contributed to the spread of COVID. Despite a clear offer from BAHA and the I.E.A.A. in April to assist with PCR testing to the MOH this offer was not taken up. Our government hospitals are not fully ready to deal with a surge in cases should the need arise. This is despite the fact that the MOH had ample time to rectify and address these gaps. The Ministry of Finance reduced the budget for all ministries including MOH by forty percent and this is despite the fact that MOH is required to respond to the pandemic. Over time for healthcare workers was cut. There were restrictions placed on the hiring of staff. There are limited masks and P.P.E.s for healthcare workers. There was a lull during the lockdown for approximately one month where there were no cases reported. The previous administrator should have used this time to develop a clear strategic plan to deal with the pandemic and to equip hospitals and healthcare workers with the needed supplies and this is compounded by the shortages of doctors and nurses, testing equipment etc.”