Cancer patient dies in orthopaedic ward

CANCER patients’ campaigners announced yesterday that another sufferer had died while being treated in the orthopaedic ward of the Nicosia General Hospital because the cancer ward has been closed down.

A statement also warned that should the Ministry of Health not reopen the oncology ward, then members of the Cancer Patients and Relatives of the Oncology Centre at Nicosia General Hospital would be forced to take action and break open the ward themselves.

“Yet another cancer patient succumbed to his illness while ‘staying as a guest’ in the orthopaedic ward of the Nicosia General Hospital,” the statement said. “How many have to die so that the interests of capitalists and bureaucrats can be served? When will the politicians and the media cry out? We have had enough of these whimsical ravings and manipulation of facts with false documents! How long will cancer patients be under persecution? For how long will cancer patients be refused their human rights?

The message slammed the Health Ministry and was highly critical of Nicosia General Hospital manager Dr Stavroula Demetriou, accusing her of misleading deputies as to why the ward had been closed. The association insisted that its research had discovered the ward could reopen with just an extra two nurses.

”She [Demetriou] had said that the closed off ward in the oncology section, which is hosting six empty beds, still needed 14 nurses in order to open and operate. However, we had clearly presented the names of the 18 nurses that had worked at the oncology ward before the beds had been reduced to 12 as well as the names of the 16 nurses that are currently working today for just 12 beds. This clearly proves that with just two extra nurses, the oncology ward can reopen and operate as it had done before it was closed down.”

Campaign chief Christos Andreou warned that if the Health Ministry did not open the ward, the association would do so itself.

“Our committee has decided to give the Ministry of Health a few days to reopen the closed off oncology ward.

“In the event that the ward is not reopened, we shall open it ourselves even if it means us being arrested. We will accept the charge of breaking down a closed hospital ward to save the lives of cancer patients.”

Hospital manager Dr Demetriou was unavailable for comment.

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