Media personnel reminded to follow protocols at VH

According to a statement from the Ministry of Health, Wellness, Human Services and Gender Relations, the Ministry acknowledges the important role of the Media in its delivery of service to the general public. “We are cognizant too, of the Media’s responsibilities, insofar as information gathering, sharing and management are concerned,” the statement goes on to say.

However, as it refers to a major player in the Ministry’s Healthcare artillery – Victoria Hospital – the Ministry observes that its ultimate responsibility is to provide Clinical Services to the general public, while being mindful of patients’ rights.

Further, the Ministry notes that the synergies that allowed the media’s information gathering agenda; Victoria Hospital’s clinical responsibilities, and the patients’ rights to exist seamlessly, have been misplaced. This has resulted in the infringement of one or all of the above mentioned liberties.

As a result, the Ministry has taken this opportunity to remind media practitioners of the Victoria Hospital Media Protocols that seek to communicate modus operandi that complement the duties of all concerned:
1) Hospital Management requires all requests for media interviews of Victoria Hospital Staff be made through the Executive Director. In consideration of the incessant force majeure makeup of hospital operations, a response to these requests will be transmitted within 12 hours. The power to grant media interviews with any staff rests solely and totally with the Executive Director.
2) No media extrapolation of any kind is permissible without prior consent from the Executive Director of the Victoria Hospital. It is overtly the right of the hospital to safeguard every patient and staff from unsolicited media exposure while on hospital property.
3) Interviews with the public cannot be executed within hospital property. Hospital Management does not repose or remit to, any patient or member of the public, its authority to grant permission to record on compound. This privilege is explicitly reserved for Victoria Hospital Management.

“The Ministry of Health appreciates your need to provide news reports to the general public and it is our hope that your appreciation for our need to provide safety, security and quality care to all our patients, visitors and staff, will demonstrably increase.

“We are confident that you and your representatives will play critical roles in assisting the Safety and Security Officers of the Victoria Hospital in the enforcement of these Media Protocols. The Ministry of Health and the Victoria Hospital anticipate your usual cooperation.”