JMDA calls on Health Minister to retract misleading statement regarding actions of interns, during protest last month

The Jamaica Medical Doctors’ Association (JMDA) is calling on Health Minister Dr. Christopher Tufton to retract what it describes as a misleading statement regarding the actions of interns, during a protest last month.

According to the Association, the statement by the Minister said the interns at the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) protested in the accident and emergency department regarding the lack of bed spaces for patients within the UHWI.

However, the JMDA says this statement is not true.

The JMDA says on June 24, interns across the island engaged in protest raising concerns related to brutal work schedules including shifts that sometimes stretched past 48 hours straight.

It notes that even after these long shifts, there is nowhere suitable for them to sleep at many of the facilities which could pose a danger to patient care.

The JMDA wants the Minister to change his statement and apologise to the interns to prevent the public from being misled.