Dear Editor,

I write to express my shock and astonishment at the fees asked of the public at the newly constructed parking facility at the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI).

The exorbitant fee structure led me to question whether the implementers at the UHWI — the premier research and health training facility in the Caribbean — did any of the following:

1) Conducted market research on the fee-paying ability of the people it serves

2) Considered how older individuals and those with mobility issues must navigate the far distance between the parking lot and the patient areas they intend to visit, not to mention the effect of daytime heat and the prospect of a sudden downpour

3) Anticipated the impact of inadequate signage, newly evolving pedestrian routes, and lack of customer friendliness on those navigating the facility

3) Assessed vehicle safety, loss, and damage liability

4) Estimated the negative effect of the new fees on the willingness of the clergy and other charitable individuals to visit and assist the sick

5) Anticipated the damming effect on its image as a Government-run care facility when its excessive fee structure is comparable to that of privately owned entities.

Donna Simon

Concerned citizen

donna.simon36@yahoo.com