Residents of Virgin Gorda voiced their frustrations at the island’s community meeting on Saturday, September 7 regarding the ongoing healthcare challenges plaguing the sister island.
Several top executives from within the Ministry of Health and Social Development and the BVI Health Services Authority were in attendance.
The meeting came on the heels of the tragic passing of Mr. Revovion “Bucky” Sprauve, who sought care at the Nurse Iris O’Neal Clinic on August 30 outside of its adjusted operating hours but passed away before medical care could be administered.
Resident Charlene Henderson recounted Sprauve’s final moments and highlighted several inadequacies from the night of the incident which she believes should not have occurred. This included the absence of signage displaying an emergency number and what she termed to be a poorly trained security official. Henderson urged the officials to address these issues to prevent a similar occurrence in the future.
In response, Dr. June Samuel, Acting Chief Executive Officer of the BVIHSA, acknowledged the concerns and assured residents that several corrections had been made following the unfortunate incident.
Minister for Health and Social Development, Hon. Vincent Wheatley, addressed the delays in advancing healthcare infrastructure, attributing them to the government’s focus on implementing the Commission of Inquiry (COI) reforms. Wheatley explained that although funds had been budgeted for healthcare improvements, the COI deadlines shifted priorities.
Ingrid Sprauve, Revovion’s sister, expressed disappointment that no member of the sitting government had reached out to the family following the incident. She also questioned Wheatley on what his government was willing to do to support the grieving family.
Wheatley responded by pointing to the assistance available through the Ministry of Social Development and the Social Security Board for grieving families.