ST JAMES, Jamaica — The Ministry of Health today announced that a team has been assembled to rectify the issue of noxious fumes at the Cornwall Regional Hospital in St James, where administrative staff at the facility resorted working under tents yesterday.

In addition to this, 70-80 per cent of the hospital’s first three floors, where the noxious fumes are said to persist, have been relocated.

Hospital staff work under tents due to noxious fumes

According to a release from the ministry, some departments on those floors continue to be operational since they have not reported any of the symptoms others have experienced.

The release also added that until a permanent solution is found, other plans that continue to be in effect include A&E Trauma, triage and management of patients with green and yellow tickets being relocated to the Mount Salem Health Centre and Laboratory services such as chemistry, microbiology, HIV and phlebotomy will be relocated to retrofitted containers among others.

Discussions are taking place with PAHO regarding about 10,000 square feet of tent space to be erected on the property adjacent to the hospital complex.

This, according to the ministry, will allow for services be relocated in close proximity to the hospital. A more detailed plan will become available in the coming week, the ministry said.

Meanwhile, the assembled committee which includes Dr Ken-Garfield Douglas (Regional Director, Western Regional Health Authority), Anthony Smikle (CEO, Cornwall Regional Hospital), Dr Derrek Harvey (Acting Senior Medical Officer, Cornwall Regional Hospital), Mark Kerr-Jarrett (Board Member, Western Regional Health Authority), and China Sinopharm (ESL Management Solutions Limited) will investigate whether the current air duct system can be isolated and corrected or if an entirely new system needs to be designed and implemented.