Hospital Death and Surgery Delays Reignite Debate on Jamaica Public Health Care

Relatives of a patient who died at Cornwall Regional Hospital are pressing staff for explanations, claiming the person waited several hours before a bed became available at the Montego Bay facility.

At the same time, Kingston Public Hospital — widely seen as the country's leading medical institution — had to postpone elective surgeries after its central air-conditioning system failed.

Together, the two episodes have brought fresh scrutiny to persistent weaknesses in Jamaica's public health network, with opposition figures leading the charge.

In a statement on Sunday, KPH attributed the cooling-system breakdown to the age of the building, parts of which date back roughly 250 years, and to the decay of vital equipment that cannot be sourced easily within Jamaica.

On Monday afternoon, the opposition issued its own statement urging citizens to demand accountability from the Government. It called on the Ministry of Health to order an independent review of infrastructure at both hospitals, publish a clear repair schedule with specific targets, and set aside sufficient funding for lasting fixes.

Opposition Spokesperson on Health Dr Alfred Dawes said, "Last year when we raised the concerns that there was mold in the operating theatres and the ICU at KPH, the push back was immediately that this was electioneering and mischief-making, and what they did was to make an announcement that within 2 weeks the theatres would be open. Now, when you have mold you ought to have air quality clearance issued that shows that there is no mold. They did not do that. They never waited to see whether or not the mold was properly treated. They simply went in, applied some fresh coats of paint and reopened the operating theatres."

Regarding Cornwall Regional, Dr Dawes argued the problems run deeper than staff numbers and bed space. "It is a policy issue. What we ought to have done over the last 10 years was to look at the growing number of chronic disease patients who are presenting acutely to the hospital. Meaning that they're coming in with high blood pressure, they're coming in with uncontrolled diabetes, and they're coming in with chest pain."

The two cases differ in nature — one rooted in failing plant and equipment, the other in patient volume — yet the opposition treats them as evidence that reform of the national health system has stalled.

Dr Dawes added, "We are moving backwards. I have said it in my sectoral presentation that you know as much as they speak about the health care budget tripling from what it was at $60 billion in 2016 to now it's, I think, $90 billion. What we're seeing is a worsening of every major indicator of a health care system. We're seeing a worsening maternity mortal maternal mortality rates. We're seeing worsening cancer rates far greater than the global average, which means that we're doing worse than the rest of the world and in many cases worse than our Caribbean neighbours."