THE Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU) says it supports calls for the release of the full details of the recent audit of public health facilities in light of the numerous complaints about hospital mismanagement, shortage of supplies and the alleged dispensing of outdated drugs by some pharmacies.

President of the BITU Senator Kavan Gayle said the union believes the workers and their representatives, just as much as any other stakeholder, have a right to be furnished with the details of the challenges of the health services.

Senator Gayle says that these details are important in protecting health sector workers from the anger of both the public and their patients.

“Some workers we represent not only fear exposure to diseases while working in these facilities without protective gear, but every day they have to face the wrath of angry patients and relatives,” Gayle said.

“Workers, such as our dedicated pharmacists, fear the threat of legal action from patients and their families from issues such as the use of outdated medicines,” he added.

Minister of Health Dr Fenton Ferguson has refused to release the full findings of the audits of the four regional health authorities, which he commissioned in May.

Concerns about the state of hospitals and the conditions under which staff had to work triggered the audit. According to the minister, plans are in place to deal with the areas of concern. However, Gayle says levelling with the public would minimise the abundant rumours, and allow staff more opportunity to focus on their work, instead of doing PR and damage control without being fully apprised of the facts.

“I believe the Government has nothing to lose in publicly explaining these problems, most of which we surmise results from a lack of financial resources, an issue which quite frankly is pervasive right across the public sector,” Senator Gayle said.

He noted that there was also the possibility that, in exposing the problems and the lack of resources to deal with them, the ministry could win the sympathy of the private sector in obtaining support to meet the demands on the facilities.

The union, he said, also supports the position that the auditor general should conduct her own audit of the facilities.