‘Golden and enticing’ package luring nurses

THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH IS LURING NURSES working in Upper Demerara/Berbice
(Region Ten) with a “golden and enticing” package to move with their skills to its newly-
constructed infectious diseases hospital at Liliendaal on the east coast corridor.
For the time being, COVID-19 patients are housed at the multi-million dollar former-hotel-
turned-hospital, but the government is hard pressed to find the complement of required skillset
required to run the special facility on a continuous basis.
Mr. Rudy Small, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC)
targeted for supplying the complement of nurses, said the content of the government’s offer will
adequately compensate the nurses for answering the Ministry’s call.
THE TERMS OF THE DEAL ARE “GOLDEN AND ENTICING”, Small said noting that it
is calculated to make them happy serving in a different Region.
“Whatever monies that they are getting now in Linden they are going to still receive, which
includes their salary and allowances, in addition to free accommodation and transpiration to and
from work,” the CEO said.
He admitted that, initially, two persons will occupy each air conditioned and self-contained
room. The accommodation, Small explained, “comes with a kitchen, refrigerator, washing
facilities and your maid services ..and they will stay at Project Dawn, on the railway
embankment, not too far from the Arthur Chung Convention Centre.”
SMALL SCOTCHED RUMOURS THAT THE LHC IS BULLYING NURSES into
accepting the Ministry’s offer, explaining that each person will voluntarily accept the offer.
The Health Ministry wants 22 nurses from Region Ten, and so far only half that amount has
agreed to take up the offer. Small is hopeful the remaining 11 will join their colleagues.

“Nobody is being forced, their names didn’t appear on a list,” Small confirmed.
Mischievous rumours quickly circulated in Linden, capital of the Region, that the government
out-foxed nurses into backing the move with promises of house lots.
When this media outfit contacted some of the nurses, they denied being compelled to take up the
offer. But confirmed if the full complement of volunteers isn’t recruited, they will have no other
option but to make the move.
They lauded Small’s efforts at trying to secure house lots on their behalf as part of a wider plan
for President Irfaan Ali to include nurses for preferential treatment too under the government’s
young professionals’ initiative.
“After the President offered to give lands to the doctors as part of the young professional
programme, I then lobbied for the nurses. The list of names of the doctors was sent and the Chief
Nurse came last week to recruit nurses…and it was then that I submitted a list of names
containing nurses,” Small explained.
SMALL REVEALED THAT THERE IS INCREASED INTEREST IN TAKING UP
APPOINTMENTS at the Infectious Diseases Hospital at Liliendaal and nurses operate on a
three-month rotation for an indefinite period.
“The nurses there are calling their friends and encouraging them to (take up the offer) as
apparently they like the living conditions and the pay. It’s a three month or a twelve weeks’
rotation. It’s twelve hours shift so one week you work three days and another week you work
four days,” Small explained.
He continued, “When they are working, they are picked up and after their shift is finished, they
are picked up from the Hospital and taken back to where they are staying. Once they are on duty
meals are provided, when they are off duty, they get $4500.00 per day for meals, now if you are
working on the general ward you get $25,000.00 hazard pay and if you are working in the ICU
(Intensive Care Unit) you get $50,000.00 and this is in addition to your pay along with all of the
other benefits that I have outlined.”

NURSES WITH UNDERLYING MEDICAL CONDITIONS AND SINGLE PARENTS
who cannot make adequate arrangements for their children, are barred from participation in the
programme, CEO Small said.