Last Updated on August 27, 2025, 1:46 PM AST by Anthony Morris
Former Permanent Secretary in Health. Douglas Wattley has accused the present Permanent Secretary in Health, Curtis Martin for “Selling Out” the nurses. The officials have shared that the accusation came after the Ministry of Health announced the reduction of working hours from 12 hours to eight hours.
The people of St Kitts and Nevis through their respective social media have expressed their disagreement. They have come out in support of PS Martin for upholding transparency and accountability in health services
The former permanent secretary in the Ministry of Health has accused PS Martin saying that in his official report, PS Martin has cited poor documentation and medication errors not reported as one of the reasons to revert to a 8-hour work shift.
While the former PS did not show offence to the change in the shift hours but he did call out the Permanent Secretary for blaming the nurses. Curtis Martin, who is currently working with the Ministry of Health, had shared a formal announcement and listed all the reasons the reduction in shift hours was crucial.
In this official announcement, PS Martin highlighted that the nurses are extremely overworked with the 12-hour shifts. The reduction in shift times was to allow for support and rest to the nurses of the country. The leadership shared a detailed report which highlighted the issues that the nurses are facing with the extra hours.
The officers then also suggested that the members of the healthcare staff need more off time to deal with the fatigue. The shortening of the shifts will bring the nurses into focus and make them more productive in the work that they are doing.
The Permanent Secretary has highlighted in his report that they were seeing unreported mistakes. The members of the public have applauded the Permanent Secretary for his dedication to transparency.
The people have shared that they are happy to see that the healthcare professionals are being held accountable for their actions and that the problems that the authorities encountered are also being addressed in a responsible manner.
Meanwhile, social media has been calling the former PS Douglas Wattley problematic for raising an issue that should not have been a tool for negativity.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
