HOSPITAL HORROR

A 15-year-old girl who was allegedly molested at a western Jamaica hospital by a nursing assistant last Friday was reportedly being overwhelmed by demons she was silently battling due to sexual assault by a relative in 2017, driving her to the brink of suicide last week.

The teen, who was at home with a friend, reportedly disclosed that she could no longer fight as she took an overdose of pills last Wednesday.

The friend then alerted her mother, who was away at work, and was rushed to seek emergency medical attention at the Noel Holmes Hospital in Lucea, Hanover, The Gleaner has learnt.

In a cruel twist of fate as she lay on her hospital bed, recovering from her near-death experience last Friday night, she was allegedly fondled by a male nursing assistant.

The child’s mother was summoned and a report made to the police.

Multiple probes have been launched into the latest allegation and both the nursing assistant and the accused relative have been taken into custody.

The child’s mother, who spoke with The Gleaner yesterday, said she was hearing of the previous assault for the first time last week as she vowed to seek justice in that and the latest case.

“I am trying to seek justice for my child. We need justice. We also had to take her from the hospital on Saturday night because she was not safe, and she said if we don’t take her from there, she was going to commit suicide,” she said, adding that she has since sought private care for the teenage girl.

“My daughter is very soft, silent. She is independent. She likes socialising with people. She also wanted to become a mental therapist, but I’m not quite sure she is gonna choose this role after this experience,” added the mom.

The case is the first major test for St Andrade Sinclair, who is entering his fourth week at the helm at Western Regional Health Authority. He told The Gleaner yesterday that he is aware of the alleged incident at the hospital.

“Well, I have heard of the allegations. It’s currently under investigation and it is a police matter right now, and that is all I have to say,” Sinclair stated.

He said that although the allegations had not yet been proven, proactive measures – which he did not disclose – were being taken to prevent such an incident going forward.

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton described the allegations as “distressing”.

“I have communicated with family and the police have been called in as well as I have ordered an internal investigation. These allegations are very serious and must be treated with utmost urgency,” Tufton said yesterday.

The Lucea police declined to comment on the matter, citing the early stage of the investigation.

Victims of abuse – physical, emotional, sexual and other forms – sometimes fail to report cases of abuse due to fear, shame and the possibility that they could be blamed. The snail-pace justice system has also been blamed for such decisions as victims are forced to relive the trauma long after the incidents have occurred, sometimes without any hope of justice.

Psychologists have warned that unresolved trauma could cause serious mental issues as they try to bury the incidents without confronting them.

Last year, 2,481 cases of sexual abuse were reported, down from 3,124 in 2019. The reported decline in cases come amid a global drop in reports of assault last year because of COVID-19 restrictions.

General abuse cases involving children also fell from 12,674 in 2019 to 9,887 last year, but between January and March 21 this year, however, an estimated 2,576 child abuse cases were reported.

In a Child Month which has seen several sexual abuse cases, this incident comes in the wake of another reported sexual assault case in which an 11-year-old girl was said to have been molested by an elderly man in Westmoreland last Wednesday.

Police reports are that on Saturday afternoon, the child was at home sleeping when she was awoken by someone removing her clothing.

When she opened her eyes, she saw a man standing over her with a firearm in his hand. He then forcefully raped and buggered her.

The police say a suspect is being sought for assault at common law, two counts of grievous sexual assault, and illegal possession of firearm.

All the incidents are still under investigation.

editorial@gleanerjm.com