MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica — The Western Regional Health Authority (WRHA) is appealing to relatives/caregivers to collect their family members who have been released from hospital care in the parishes of St James, Trelawny, Hanover and Westmoreland.

This as overcrowding is reportedly severely impacting the public health response due to beds being taken up by these persons, now classified as social cases.

According to a release from WRHA, there are currently 100 social cases in the four parishes of the western region from a total bed capacity of 731 beds, accounting for nearly 14 per cent of the total bed count. Of the 100 cases, 32 have been placed at the Falmouth Infirmary. Meanwhile, 68 beds remain occupied by social cases, limiting the Authority’s ability to accommodate an increasing number of sick patients.

Regional Director of the WRHA, St Andrade Sinclair, indicated that as of Sunday, August 13, the Cornwall Regional Hospital and the Savanna-la-Mar Hospital are both at 100 per cent capacity, with 67 beds taken up by patients who have been officially released.

“Residents of Western Jamaica who seek inpatient care in one of our four hospitals are being impacted by these social cases. This situation has led to persons sitting in chairs while waiting on beds. We empathise with those who wait. Social cases in hospitals have, however, become a societal problem which we need to fix together. Persons need to take responsibility for their loved ones,” the Sinclair said.

Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr Christopher Tufton, has also confirmed that social cases continue to be a major issue preventing access to hospital beds for those who are in need of care.

According to Tufton, “The advice I have received on pursuing legal action against persons who abandon family members in our hospitals seems to suggest some doubt whether such a course of action would be possible. I am told that the assessment continues, and I am anxiously awaiting a definitive position on this matter. In the meantime, I support fully the appeal for family members to claim their relatives so we can treat persons who genuinely need a bed. It’s a crisis we deal with almost every day in many of our hospitals.”