The former Chief of Emergency who stated publicly that lives are being put at risk is ecstatic that Government has ordered an independent review
“I can honestly say this is one of the happiest days in my life.”
That’s how Dr. Ed Shultz feels about the Ministry of Health directing the Bermuda Hospitals Board to engage in an independent operational review of its Emergency Department.
“I’ve worked for this for 16 years to get this issue addressed”, he says. “I just can’t say how wonderful I feel at this point.”
Kim Wilson, Ministry of Health, said on Tuesday that the Government expects “clear findings, practical recommendations, and prompt implementation” from the independent review.
The hospital has seven days to update the Ministry as to who will perform the review, and the scope and methodology of the review.
Speaking to Bermuda Broadcasting following the announcement, Dr Shultz sought to emphasise “how important the Minister’s actions have been in getting this accomplished.”
Dr. Ed Shultz was Director and Chief of Emergency from 1988 until 2018, followed by six years on the hospitals board, stepping down in December 2024.
Last week, he went public with fierce criticism of the construction of the Emergency Department in the new Acute Care Wing, saying that patients were being boarded in the hallways from day one, due to fewer ED beds and no surge capacity.
He also revealed that he had made a number of proposals to the hospital to relieve overcrowding.
The hospital has previously confirmed that, from January to March this year, about two in five acute care patients did not have a medical need to take up a hospital bed.
However, Dr. Shultz says that his concerns with emergency care boarding had not been taken seriously during his time at KEMH.
He says the Government “is now finally making the hospital act in a manner that’s accountable to the people of this country…
“I’m absolutely convinced it can be fixed, and we don’t have to accept substandard emergency care in this country.”
As for how the independent review order by the Ministry compares to his request for a comission of inquiry, Dr. Shultz says “I think they’re both essentially the same…
“What I want is someone other than the hospital, with external expertise, to come in and analyze what’s going on and say… you need to do A, B, C, and D.”
Dr. Shultz added that, since going public with his concerns last week, he has been “inundated with calls of support”, but also calls recounting “horror stories” of incidents that occured to patients while in the Emergency Department.
“I’ve been contacted by staff who resigned because in good conscience they couldn’t practice under those conditions and deliver a substandard care…
“The only thing I care about is that the people in Bermuda, who I feel deeply indebted to, get the best emergency care in the world – because that’s what they deserve.”
