Jamaican health ministry activates emergency protocols amid nurses' massive strike

Jamaica's Ministry of Health activated emergency protocols in response to a massive strike staged by registered nurses in public hospitals on Tuesday.

Minister of Health Fenton Ferguson said the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) has been activated and emergency protocols are in place to ensure that operations at health facilities are not severely hampered.

"The regional technical directors have all been alerted and directed to monitor the situation at the local level. The EOC team has been contacting all hospitals and health centers to ascertain the extent of the problem," he said.

The minister said the EOC will ensure the ongoing monitoring of attendance of nurses and the impact on service delivery, provide central direction and guidance to the regional health authorities and determine the nature of intervention that may be required.

The EOC will also oversee the re-deployment of staff based on emerging situations, and periodically inform the public of measures being taken and of any changes to service delivery, according to the minister.

Some 52 percent of nurses scheduled to work have been reported absent at several public health facilities across the Caribbean island, the Ministry of Health said.

President of Nurses' Association of Jamaica (NAJ) Janet Farr said nurses temporarily withdrew their services because the government delayed paying them retroactive money from a reclassification exercise in the health sector several years ago.

Farr said her association was informed that the fund had been allocated in the 2015/2016 national budget but the government is now indicating the payment would not be made until next year.

She said the delay of payment has greatly upset nurses and the protest will continue on Wednesday.

In a statement issued on Tuesday afternoon, the Ministry of Health said the executives of the NAJ made no notification before taking the industrial action. Endi