A Hope Town Village, West Coast Berbice family, is calling for justice, following the death of a young member of the family last Friday at the Infectious Diseases Hospital at Lilliendaal, Georgetown.
In a video posted to Facebook, the child’s aunt Carol McPherson related that Jeniah Iris McPherson started complaining of belly pains on Tuesday, February 1, 2022 and was rushed to the Mahaicony Cottage Hospital where she was examined by a doctor. Jeniah was subsequently transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) on the said day for further medical attention.
The aunt related that a Covid-19 test was performed on young Jeniah which came back positive. She was then transferred to the Infectious Diseases Hospital at Liliendaal, where she was admitted to the Covid-19 Unit, last Tuesday. According to the aunt, Jeniah’s Mother Nolita Pellew was at the hospital with her throughout the ordeal and reported to the family that Jeniah continued to experience severe abdominal pains and swelling.
For the next ten days, doctors at the Hospital treated Jeniah for the Covid-19 infection; allegedly ignoring the cries of the young 3-year-old and her mother for attention to be paid to the pains she was feeling in her abdomen. The family’s urgent request to move Jeniah to a private hospital was denied by the Hospital staff. According to the aunt, the family was told by doctors that the Hospital cannot release Jeniah until after 10 to 14 days.
The Hospital then requested last Wednesday to have a CT scan done on the abdomen of Jeniah and the family agreed. According to the aunt, a nephew who was sent to pay for the CT scan observed a “green thing” coming out of the bag and asked the nurses what it was, One of the nurses answered, “She eat grass.”
On the said Wednesday, the Hospital then asked to perform a surgery on Jeniah the following day, and after some deliberations the family agreed. The surgery was done on Friday, February 11, 2022. Sadly, young Jeniah died hours after surgery, in which doctors discovered that her appendix had burst inside of her.
The operations at the COVID-19 Hospital continue to attract widespread attention and criticisms from families who would have lost loved ones who were in the care of the institution. In September last year the relatives of Devika Wong and Bibi Persaud, a mother and daughter who succumbed to the virus, protested for an investigation into the measures in place at the Liliendaal institution.
That same month the family of 56-year-old Vanessa Maynard, a Nurse, issued a call for the Ministry of Health to review the operations of the Infectious Disease Hospital at Liliendaal, alleging that neglect was a contributing factor in her death. In both cases the Hospital denied the allegations.
The death of Jeniah McPherson again raises questions as to the Government’s ability to handle the Covid-19 pandemic and to keep Guyanese safe. The family is calling on President Irfaan Ali and Leader of the PNCR Aubrey Norton to address their concerns.
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