DIAMOND RUBY — Contrary to what has been recently communicated by some media outlets, the Juan F. Luis Hospital and Medical Center’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and Emergency Room (ER) remain open and caring for patients, the hospital said today.
JFL has suffered staffing challenges and has been using Pafford Medical Services to augment JFL’s critical staffing needs. Due to the current staffing shortage, when a patient count exceeds safe standards, JFL evaluates and transfers care to an accepting hospital, the hospital said in a prepared statement.
“At this moment, JFL is currently at capacity within the ICU due to a staffing shortage,” the hospital said. “Hospital staff and administration are actively working with the Virgin Islands Department of Health and Pafford Medical Services to provide additional nursing support.”
During an update this morning, JFL was promised six Registered Nurses and six paramedics to arrive by the end of the week through the Pafford Medical Services.
JFL is not diverting all ICU patients. At this time, JFL has made a determination that based on the staff-to-patient ratio, each patient will be assessed and it will be determined at that time if a transfer is medically necessary.
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“Our desire is to always do what is best for our patients,” Interim JFL CEO Dyma Williams said. “At times such as this, this includes transferring patients to partnering hospitals that can provide critical care. We continue to work to identify opportunities for resolution of this issue. We thank our dedicated ICU doctors, nurses, and support persons for their continued dedication to our patients and community.”
Williams said the goal “is to maintain integrity and transparency with patients and the St. Croix community.”
“JFL will continue to keep the public updated and keep patient care at the center of decisions as it navigates through staffing levels,” she said. “This includes communications with the Department of Health regarding staffing levels and the continued need for Pafford.”
