UHWI nurses protest staffing shortages and poor conditions as education disputes continue

Nurses at the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) staged a protest Tuesday morning, saying unacceptable working conditions have persisted for years and that they have reached a breaking point. They are calling for urgent action and want to speak directly with Minister of Health Dr Christopher Tufton.

TVJ News reporter Antonia Atkinson said staff stressed that their concerns are not primarily about pay, but about how nurses and patients are being treated amid severe capacity pressures. Nurses reported more than 105 patients in one area, with some unstable cases leaving a single nurse responsible for as many as 40 patients.

"We are just limited in a lot of ways that we just cannot help," one nurse said. "They're asking us to make wine out of water and we are not Jesus." Another described the workload as "prison work," adding, "It don't make no sense."

Staff said patients are sometimes transferred from other hospitals without clear limits on admissions, and that bed shortages force them to place patients on resuscitation beds on dirty floors, raising infection risks. They also cited missing supplies, including aspirin needed within hours for stroke care. "How do we tell the patients that we don't have this?" one nurse asked, calling for a clear timeline for procurement to secure basic resources.

"We are nurses who care. We want to give the utmost care to the patient. We are not in a position to do that because we don't have the resources [or] the bed space," another nurse said.

The midday bulletin also noted that ten people were left homeless after a devastating fire in Negril, though no further details were given in the segment.

Separately, the Ministry of Education rejected claims that preparatory school students receive preferential treatment over primary school peers in the Primary Exit Profile placement process. Officials addressed the issue Monday during a results analysis press conference at Jamaica House, after some parents raised concerns that longstanding perceptions of prep-school advantage may have shifted this year.

Chief Education Officer Dr Kasan Troupe said placement is merit-based under education regulations, with grades four, five and six combined into a single score. Students are ranked from highest to lowest performing, and about 99.5% of placements are handled by a computerized algorithm with minimal human intervention. Manual review applies mainly where the system cannot place a student or where special educational or accessibility needs arise.

The ministry also reminded parents that grade four assessment results are due this week, with assignments scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday. Officials stressed that grades four and five count alongside grade six toward the final placement score.

Meanwhile, the University of Technology Students Union said it remains opposed to a proposed tuition increase after talks with the administration failed to produce agreement. UTech revised its plan from a 10% rise to 9% and suggested spreading payments across both semesters, but the union rejected the adjustment as insufficient relief. The council plans to submit a final counter-proposal and has called for mediation through the Ministry of Education, which has indicated willingness to facilitate discussions. UTech President Dr Kevin Brown said the university remains open to dialogue while balancing student concerns with rising costs and limited budget support.