NASSAU, The Bahamas – Newly-appointed Minister of Health and Wellness the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville says the plan is to move swiftly to bring the COVID-19 situation under control, specifically at the country’s main medical facilities.

He made the statement following a tour of the Princess Margaret Hospital, the country’s tertiary medical care facility on New Providence, on Tuesday, September 21, 2021, the day after he was officially appointed to that post.

Dr. Darville’s first order of business was to meet with union representatives of healthcare workers, and tour public medical facilities. He met with union executives of the Consultant Physicians Staff Association, Bahamas Doctors Union, and the Nurses Union at the Ministry of Health and Wellness headquarters on Meeting Street on Tuesday.  Also present was the Hon. Philip Davis, Prime Minister.

Regarding the talks with the union, Dr. Darville said that back pay, and others issues and concerns will be addressed.

Following the meeting with union executives, both Dr. Darville and the Prime Minister were taken on a tour of Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) and adjoining facilities, led by Mary Walker, Hospital Administrator.  Also present were Catherine Weech, Managing Director, Public Hospitals Authority (PHA), and other officials from the Ministry of Health.

After the tour of PMH, Dr. Darville said, “As a health care professional, I had the opportunity to tour this facility, see the needs and to realize that because of the COVID situation, many of the other services that must be provided at the tertiary facility are lacking: we need to move swiftly to get the COVID situation under control and be able to handle our cases in this third wave to prepare ourselves for any additional mutations or variants of COVID-19 that may come our way.”

Darville said he has made inquiries into whether there are sufficient beds at PMH.

“I still am not convinced and so we need to look for additional space for additional improvements to the tertiary facility to ensure that we are able to handle our COVID cases in an effective way, while not compromising the state of our tertiary healthcare facility,” he said.

As for free testing for the COVID-19 virus, Dr. Darville pointed out that it has been one of the mandates of this new administration.

“We are now in negotiations with companies, we are also speaking directly with the COVID task force. There are a few challenges as well as policing information as well as legislation to control the way it’s done. But I am telling you now, as one of our 10-point plan, we are definitely going to move into free testing and we are going to look at the Antigen test as a screening test as we begin now to get this virus and pandemic under control.”

Dr. Darville, today, met with union representatives and staff of the Rand Memorial Hospital in Grand Bahama to address similar concerns.  He is also expected to visit the mini hospital in Abaco.