…patients were indeed eating out of peanut butter bottles
“I understand that it was happening but I was not aware of it”. – Clarke- Daniels
The Administrator of the National Psychiatric Hospital, on Thursday, responded to several issues concerning her institution. Recently there have been accusations and damning allegations about conditions at the hospital and the treatment of patients.
The Administrator, Leila Clarke- Daniels, arranged to have three of her staff refute the allegations and state the ‘true’ side of the story. They were George Stanley, Nurse Aide; Meena Yassin, Chief Cook; and Michael Crawford, Patient-Care Assistant.
However, the meeting turned into a disagreement of opinions at one point.
“UNCLEAN EATING UTENSILS”
Responding to allegations of unclean eating utensils and “patients [who] are eating out of peanut butter bottles and flaked plates with holes”, Daniels said that even if the situation existed, no complaint was made to her about it.
She noted that the nurses are all accountable for the items issued to them. “Everybody knows in this institution that I have strong feelings for my patients and I don’t see nonsense going on with them; they know that, and if it was brought to my attention that those patients were eating and drinking out of nut butter bottles, you all know immediately I would have taken action!” she stated.
“I understand that it was happening but I was not aware of it”.
“Why the media got to know before me?” Daniels then accused Stanley of being the whistleblower for the two articles.
“Where you used to eat your food? We found a dining hall for you, that you never had in this institution! You can go there, put your food in a microwave, to a refrigerator, sit at a dining hall table and watch TV! You used to got to sit down in that stink ward with the patients and eat your food!” she said.
“I know for a fact that it was you [referring to Stanley] and you must not come back to me! I know that he is the mouthpiece who talked about the things in the ward and nothing could erase that from me.” The nurse began to defend himself by saying that he never saw this reporter before.
Stanley however stated that he agrees with the issues being highlighted in the media “because it must be brought to the attention [of the media] and must be rectified!”
Daniels replied by adding that her doors are always opened…”Me door always opened! Any one of them can come here and talk– anyone!”
Michael Crawford said that he knew the situation of patients eating out of nut butter bottles was happening and “I brought it to Matron Barbara Gray’s attention “out of love for my patients”.
Daniels disagreed about the channel of reporting and argued that the matter should have been reported to her since “the matron is responsible for nursing….I am responsible for administration and those supplies and they know it!
“They’re supposed to report those things to me!” Nurse Stanley added that he was grateful that somebody realised that…somebody can bring those issues to the public”.
“A WICKED ACT”
Commenting on the photographs of unclean eating utensils and a dirty- looking water pitcher, the administrator said that those articles were already condemned and were being stored somewhere for disposal but were “maliciously” photographed by a member of staff who has an axe to grind with the institution.
“It was a wicked act by a staff who is perturbed about something… as it was the staff went back, uplifted those condemned items and brought them to the media”.
She said that nurses would, on many occasions, come and tell her that they can’t find their mops, buckets– that the patients destroyed them and hide them—“ but what I know, for a fact is that we always have things available so that they can get the stuff”.
“TERRIBLE FOOD”
In the presence of the Head Cook, Daniels showed this newspaper a menu for the week with the specific meals given to patients, after allegations of patients being given “fish, fish, fish all day; these patients does get fed up of the fish” and that the food was “terrible”.
The Administrator said that “it get some of them [nurses] sitting down right in front of them [the patients] eating out their food…every day, they eating from it [the patients’ food], up to yesterday I heard that”.
The Head Cook added that there are two main meals, the lunch and supper and if fish is given for lunch, chicken is given for supper. “Based on those menus, that is what we work with”.
“We would never get better in this institution because when you bring it [complaints] it is simply allegations– we can’t go anywhere!:” argued Stanley.
Daniels admitted that there are times at the facility when “things don’t always be as they should be– since I came here, this institution has seen marked improvement!”
“SNAKES CRAWLING UP STEPS OF WARDS”
Stanley reported that a snake was killed this past week on the step. The administrator replied that “this is a bushy area…What can we do? We are near the creek. Regardless of what state the compound is in, you will still find snakes; the buildings are low”. She was grateful that no patient or staff was ever bitten by a snake.
She added the staff “must see and acknowledge the progress that has been made and let us build on that progress, and not look back on the negatives….and I want that if they have a problem, let them come to me.
“ if I can’t deal with it, I would understand them going beyond me, as we had agreed with the lighting situation”.