On a recent episode of the Talking Points radio show, the social commentator said most of the issues at the hospital and within the governing BVI Health Services Authority (BVIHSA), are a result of government decisions although healthcare workers are often blamed.

“The DOSH and by extension, the BVIHSA and its facilities do really good work that they don’t get credit for. People keep blaming the organisation but they are at a bottleneck and the problem isn’t within the organization – it’s outside,” said Grange who is also an employee of the BVIHSA. “It’s an administrative problem and it needs to be fixed at the governmental level.”

Grange also posited that healthcare is poised to worsen if the government doesn’t get serious about addressing concerns at their end. “Until the government becomes serious about fixing healthcare and stops putting the blame on the BVIHSA, the people in this territory will always suffer with substandard care. Not just that, if it’s not addressed with great urgency, the possibility of it deteriorating even more is looming,” Grange said pointedly.

The BVIHSA has faced many challenges and criticisms within the local community as residents often complain about the low staff-to-patient ratio as well as inadequate access to healthcare in some communities. The government has indicated that steps have been taken to address staffing shortages including the recruitment of Cuban medical professionals and offering increased salaries to attract health professionals from diverse countries.