BNU chief says there is a bigger picture; deaths impacted by comorbidities
NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Nearly 1,000 healthcare workers in The Bahamas contracted the coronavirus during the ongoing pandemic, with 13 of them being claimed by the deadly respiratory virus, according to a Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) executive summary.
The summary published on Monday shows that 955 healthcare workers contracted the virus in the nation since last January, though the first case was confirmed in mid-March 2020.
This represents 4.5 percent of the nearly 21,000 cases recorded up to Wednesday.
The fatality rate among healthcare workers, based on the data gleaned from the executive summary, stands at just over one percent — consistent with the nation’s case fatality rate (CFR).
There have been 531 COVID-related deaths in The Bahamas, with 43 under investigation.
This reflects a CFR of 2.5 percent, meaning for every 100 people who have contracted the virus, at least two have died.
The Ministry of Health reported yesterday that another eight people died from the virus between September 2 and 23.
These include six women and two men, ages 46 through 70.
Speaking with Eyewitness News, Bahamas Nurses Union (BNU) President Amancha Williams said most of the nurses who died had comorbidities and “I can tell the government to stop painting a picture to the people that it is just COVID”.
“It has to be a picture that if we were a healthy nation, no matter if COVID came, no matter if SARs or Ebola comes our way, if we have a healthy nation, a country, then we wouldn’t have to be seeing so many deaths, OK?
“Most of the nurses that I’ve known who have died — if 10 died, nine of them had and only one or one percent did not have comorbidities.
“Every one of my colleagues were diabetic, hypertensive, asthmatic and obese.”
According to the union president, a nurse who died this month previously had a stroke and was diabetic and hypertensive.
“She was right there being in her area…that made her really susceptible to her death,” she said.
“If we were to take her off the job for six, seven months or a year, she wouldn’t have died.
“She would have been right home until this COVID passes.”
Hospitalizations have dropped from nearly 200 to 146 in the last few weeks, however, the figure remains a challenge.
Williams said nurses remain strained with hospitalized COVID cases, in addition to the non-COVID patients and those who are admitted to accident and emergency.
“It is still overwhelming and we are still trying to meet the demands of the country, and so, we are still asking [for help] as the nurses are very overwhelmed,” she said.
“Not in history have we seen the most deaths ever, so our mental status is being challenged.”
