By NEWSDAY REPORTERS Tuesday, November 20 2007

click on pic to zoom in

TRAUMATISED: Nekeisha Noel, mother of the kidnapped baby....

HEALTH MINISTER Jerry Narace yesterday met with Nekeisha Noel, the mother of the newborn baby who was kidnapped from the Mount Hope Women’s Hospital (MHWH) on Friday, to comfort and assure her that the police and the North-Central Regional Health Authority (NCRHA) are doing all they can to return her baby safely to her.

Narace visited Noel at the MHWH before he attended the first meeting of the new Cabinet of Prime Minister Patrick Manning at Whitehall at 9 am. Narace was one of the first ministers to leave Whitehall at about 11 am for his new offices at Park Street in Port-of-Spain to meet with his new members of staff.

Meantime, Noel, 22, of Santa Cruz, was later taken by investigating officers of the Homicide Bureau where she gave a description of the woman to police sketch artistes.

Approached by reporters as he left via the Serpentine Road exit of Whitehall, Narace was asked whether the kidnapping of Noel’s baby was discussed at the Cabinet meeting. “We cannot tell you what was discussed in Cabinet, but sufficed to say that the matter is receiving the attention of the board of the NCRHA. I myself spoke to the mother this morning. The police are working very closely with the Permanent Secretary (of the Ministry of Health) and the NCRHA,” the minister said.

Asked whether there would be a comprehensive review of security arrangements at the MHWH’s or an overhaul of current security measures at the hospital in light of the newborn’s abduction, Narace said: “The (NCRHA) Board (of directors) is currently looking at all who’s accountable and all who is responsible, and we will meet with the board shortly.”

The kidnapping has heightened the security alert at other institutions with the South West and North West Regional Health Authorities (SWNWRHA) enforcing the mandatory display of identification badges by employees. The RHAs were also reviewing their security measures.

The South West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) announced increased security measures and procedures at the San Fernando General Hospital, (SFGH) especially at the Obstetrics and Gynaecology department which oversees the hospital’s maternity department. SFGH medical director, Dr Stephen Ramroop, said the hospital would be tightening its processes, including the procedures involved in the delivery and collection of new-born babies by parents. Ramroop said the “entire delivery and handover procedures” were revisited and tightened following the kidnapping.

“We have not had any such incident at the hospital, but we have heightened our security operations and processes throughout the hospital and especially at the obstetrics and gynaecology department including the delivery of babies. Who collects whom, all of these are established processes at the hospital and will now become much more heightened, ” he said.

SWRHA communications specialist, Nalini Parasram, said visitors will be required to wear a visitors pass which must be plainly visible when visiting patients outside of the hospital scheduled visiting hours. The head of security for the NWRHA reportedly wrote to the Nursing Administrator reiterating that nursing staff comply with the wearing of identification badges. He also met with the security service provider to review the security measures at the maternity section.