Senior Reporter
jensen.lavende@guardian.co.tt
North West Regional Health Authority CEO Anthony Blake says the decision not to include parents of infants who died at the Port-of-Spain Neonatal ICU (NICU) was out of the hands of the regional authority.
Responding to concerns raised by attorneys from Freedom Law Chambers, who are representing the parents of seven infants who died in early April, Blake said the interviewees were determined by the investigative team of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).
“PAHO is an independent organisation and the North West Regional Authority does not determine the scope of their investigation, or who they decide to interview or the investigation methodology. We would have been very, very careful not to interfere in their independent investigation. So any question in that regard would have to really be posed to PAHO, I can’t really comment on that,” Blake said.
Last Friday, in a media release, the Ministry of Health said the PAHO team had completed their investigations in less than a week, between last Monday and Friday. The investigative team included Prof Nalini Singh, a paediatrician from the George Washington University; Dr Grisel Rodriguez, a clinical microbiologist at the Centro de Asistencia Medica Soriano in Uruguay and Dr Gillian Birchwood, a newborn intensive care specialist and head of the Neonatal Care Intensive Unit at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Barbados. The team met with Health Ministry officials at the end of their investigation and will submit a final report to the Ministry.
A day later, Sue Ann Deosaran, of Freedom Law Chambers, wrote to the NWRHA in a pre-action protocol letter saying that their clients were happy with how quickly the PAHO team concluded the investigation but were concerned none of the affected parents were contacted.
Speaking on the issue, Danyelle Samaroo, whose daughter Aarya Raya Chatergoon died on April 5, said she was unaware that the investigation was completed until seeing it in the media.
She said, “It was very saddening, because we thought we would have been contacted and that we would have known before the media. Nobody said anything to us, and we found out about it in the news and since then we have had no updates.”
Kerron Charles, whose daughter Kae’ Jhene Kerniah Charles died on April 6, said the decision not to include the parents was surprising to him and his wife.
Charles said he was beyond sad, was angry at the entire situation and just wanted closure.
“You could imagine having to pass her stroller and items you buy for her every day. My wife does have nightmares and would wake me up to comfort her. Right now, I standing in the house I built for my daughter. I just want them to be real and let me know what is going on,” he said.
Two other parents, who did not want to be named, said they too were disheartened that they were not at least questioned by the PAHO investigators. One parent added that the five-day investigation seemed short and was surprised it was completed within that time.
The families spoken to all said they were accessing counselling for the deaths of the children, which Blake said was ordinarily offered in such instances.