“I will remember that I do not treat a fever chart, a cancerous growth, but a sick human being, whose illness may affect the person’s family and economic stability.“
– Hippocratic Oath
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Employees in customer service and healthcare industries have one thing in common. They are both high stress jobs.
You never know who is going to come through the door. It could be a bubbly ray of sunshine, or an obnoxious fiend who threatens to ruin everything else you do for the entire day. Whoever that person turns out to be, you’re still expected to do your job professionally.
In recent weeks, however, local news has reported several instances of disruptions in the health sector which are cause for concern. Doctors and nurses have protested alleged attacks by patients. Less than a week ago, nurses at the Mandeville Hospital walked off the job after a patient allegedly bit one of their colleagues. A few weeks earlier, doctors at the same hospital refused to work because a patient had reportedly smashed a window.
Both the Medical Association of Jamaica and the Nurses Association of Jamaica have called for increased security for their members. But when customers are on the receiving end of a service level that leaves much to be desired, who speaks on their behalf?
Last month, a 34 year old man died on the floor of Spanish Town Hospital after reportedly being ignored for 14 hours. His death was preceded by that of a stroke victim at the May Pen Hospital who languished without care for some eight hours until his death. Then there was that letter to the editor published in the Jamaica Observer in August by a former patient of the Victoria Jubilee Hospital who recounted a tale of horrific treatment meted out to pregnant women at the maternity facility. In response to the letter, many readers felt compelled to share their own nightmarish experiences.
As investigations into these incidents continue, there is an important issue to be discussed. Are patients getting the level of service promised at our health care institutions? Or are they getting exactly what they deserve?
Ethical issues must also be of concern when healthcare staff refuse to care for sick and dying patients in order to fulfill a subjective demand. As important as the issue of safety or salary is to the doctor or nurse, shouldn’t the health or life of the patient come first? What if a fireman decides he is not going into a burning building because he doesn’t want to be burned? Or a policeman refuses to go to a crime scene because he himself might become a victim?
Right now in West Africa, there are thousands of healthcare workers risking their lives to save patients with Ebola. Can we be confident that our doctors and nurses will do the same for their fellow Jamaicans if or when we face such a crisis?