Flooding stops work at Browne’s Avenue Clinic as staff lament poor working conditions

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There was serious interruption to the daily operations at the Browne’s Avenue Health Centre yesterday morning as both nurses and auxiliary staff at the All Saints Road facility ceased work as a result of serious flooding.

When OBSERVER media visited the health centre, cleaners as well as nurses were heavily engaged in trying to sweep up water.

A staff member who wished not to be named gave a more detailed account of the challenges faced by staff.

 “When rain falls, the entire two and three offices are flooded. Sometimes, the rain doesn’t even fall heavily. If you look water is coming from the roof where the light sockets are and there’s a like glass thing where sometimes water drains from it and it looks like an icicle but it drops water and we constantly have to keep drying it off throughout the day,” the worker said.

“This morning, the doctor’s office, other places and the entire walkway full off with water. It was very deplorable. The cleaners had to be in that water pushing it, drying it up with mops. Some of the nurses had to be using mops to dry up as well and some people had to turn back because the place was flooded.”

Another member of staff was however not shy to air her frustrations.

Celine Matthew, along with sharing her agony over the issue, further called on the government to address the matter.

“It is so disgusting on us because it leave our backs hampering with pain, our bodies hampering with pain. We have to always be trying to avoid certain situations and then again, the nurses — certain time they cannot do their work because when the rain comes, inside of the room is flooded.

“When they talk to people and tell them to come and fix it, they nar come and fix nothing. Plus, this morning, the nurses had to go outside so that we can mop the place so that they can do their work. I am begging the minister to come up here, come up to the health clinic and do something about it fast and quick before somebody gets themselves damaged.”

The Browne’s Avenue Health Center is located in the constituency of the Minister of Health, Molwyn Joseph, who is currently attending a United Nations Summit in New York.

Meantime, the newly elected President of the Antigua and Barbuda Nurses Association, Soria Dupie-Winston said she has not received any reports from staff at the Browne’s Avenue Community Health Center.

She did say, however, that staff at the Old Road Clinic had to be sent home today because of a similar situation.

Dupie-Winston said the Superintendent of Nurses is aware of the matter and a report is expected to be submitted to the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Joan Carrott.

Carrott did not respond to our calls for comments on the matter.

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