KINGSTON, Jamaica— As of January 2022, the Government will begin the process of filing civil suits against the families of people who are deemed to have abandoned their relatives in health facilities.

Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr Christopher Tufton, gave the warning as he noted that there are currently 174 of these social cases in hospitals across the country.

Social cases refer to patients who have been released but remain in hospital because they have nowhere else to go as their families have abandoned them. There are instances where these people have remained in hospital for up to seven years, Tufton revealed.

Tufton, who was making a statement in the House of Representatives on Wednesday, said that by filing the civil suits, the intention is to “test these cases to see what the courts’ opinion of this particular situation is likely to be, and from that opinion we’ll explore, where possible, an adjustment in policy or law to hold those persons more accountable”.

“It is really unfair for persons who need a hospital bed and cannot get one, because it is occupied for multiple years by persons who would have been released but have nowhere to go. I believe that the State has to maintain compassion for those persons because they are victims, but we should not confuse the compassion we show to those persons by extending it to the family members who exploit those persons’ situation [and] are taking advantage of their assets where these assets exist. We do have evidence to suggest that those assets exist,” he said.

Tufton noted that through the ministry’s social work case management process, families have been identified that are able to support the care and treatment of these social cases but have refused to take on the responsibility.

 “We know of cases of persons who are receiving pension from overseas, but relatives have refused to use these funds to support their relatives in hospital or other care. We know of instances where persons have been abandoned in hospital and relatives have rented their property and refuse to use these resources to care for the owners of the property and basically abandon them in our hospital system,” he added.

Tufton stressed that the Government intends to address this matter directly, first, by reaching out to these family members “and hopefully, having dialogue with them to try to help them to appreciate what their responsibilities are. Failing that, we will take any follow-up action that is necessary to see how we can change the attitude and the approach by putting in place the policies, and if necessary, the laws to protect these persons, who have become victims”.

He urged Jamaicans to desist from the practice of deliberately abandoning elderly or sickly relatives at the hospital during the Christmas period.

He further advised individuals to ensure that their relatives with chronic conditions take their medication, so that they do not become ill and need hospitalization.