KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Western Patriots, a professional affiliate of the People’s National Party (PNP), has added its voice to calls for Minister of Health Dr Christopher Tufton to resign over the “very serious” situation at Cornwall Regional Hospital (CRH).

The Patriots also want the regional health leadership to join Tufton in immediately resigning, in a bid to allow a new board and minister with “fresh, untainted hands and forward thinking ideas” to oversee the rehabilitation of the hospital.

The PNP affiliate body said it is particularly concerned about the possible lasting effects of cancer causing molds on health care workers and patients who were housed at the facility.

In a release this morning, it said whereas they acknowledge that the building has had issues over the course of the last two administrations, the fact remains that since the report confirmed what was wrong in February 2017, the building should have been closed.

“The fact that Aflotixins were found is especially frightening, as Aflotoxins directly result in cancer of throat and nose. The fungus starchybrotys, a special Aspegillus, also causes pulmonary haemmorhage, which means that those affected will cough up blood.”

The group said it found it “absolutely reckless, knowing that especially these three agents were among other harmful micro-organisms to be found in the building, that Western Regional Health Authority (WRHA), Ministry of Health (MOJ) and the Minister of Health Dr Christopher Tufton, would hide these results from their staff and put their health and life expectancy at risk.”

The body said it wants “the nation to understand that to the people of western Jamaica, Cornwall Regional Hospital is Bellevue, Victoria Jubilee, Bustamante Children’s Hospital and Kingston Public Hospital all wrapped into one.“

It further argued that the delay in shutting down the facility also means that there will be a delay in its reopening, and as a result critical time, and extensive amounts of resources have been wasted over the last 13 months.

It added that as a group of professionals it is also disturbing that “our own Government seems to be continuing the perceived trend of bias against local professionals and expertise. The disregard of the initial report done by Jamaicans in favour of the supposed PAHO report is a slap in the face of every Jamaican professional and we remind the minister and the government that Jamaica has capable and excellent professionals on whom our county can rely.”

The group said that it is also very disappointed that Member of Parliament (MP) for West Central St James, Marlene Malahoo-Forte in her capacity as Attorney General would give such poor advice, which would gravely affect Western Jamaicans, and specifically her own constituents whom she was elected to serve.

The group recommended that over the next 13 months the government should request from the United Nations the 1000 bed hospital ship, as it is concerned about the distance patients will have to travel to neighbouring parishes to access health care, which is further compounded by check points at every border due to the SOE/Enhanced Security Measures.

It also recommended that a database be set up for all staff members at hospital who may have been exposed, most of whom may not display symptoms until way in the future, adding that health screening should also be set up for them and very importantly resources must be earmarked for their medical bills and welfare.