The health ministry has said construction of Cayman’s long-term mental health facility is not anticipated to be completed until “sometime in March”, however the full “phased opening” could take as much as a year.
This, as the ministry, in a two-page statement published on Thursday, responded to Dr. Marc Lockhart’s concerns shared in the Compass about the facility’s status amid the ongoing mental health crisis and his decision not to return as Mental Health Commission chair.
Phased opening
Health Minister Sabrina Turner, in the statement, said she reaffirmed government’s commitment to “ensuring a fully functioning, residential mental health facility on Grand Cayman is open and operational at the earliest possible opportunity”.
“We all recognise the urgent necessity for this LTMHF to provide long overdue services to our community,” said Turner.
However, the ministry statement said, “invariably” the facility will require a phased opening “which may in itself take as much as a year to fully implement”. It denied that the East End structure was complete.
The ministry, explaining progress on the facility, said that the Public Works Department, which is managing its construction, has experienced multiple delays over the past two years, initially due to COVID-19 and subsequently because of supply chain issues.
Following Lockhart’s concerns, which included frustration over a lack of communication from the ministry, Premier Wayne Panton and Turner met with him on Wednesday as “they discussed practical ways to accelerate the outstanding work in relation to staffing and operationalising the LTMHF”.
The ministry also said a new chairperson for the commission has been identified, and that individual has agreed to serve, pending formal appointment by Cabinet.
“The new Chairperson is a current member of the MHC, and has Dr Lockhart’s full support,” the statement said.
Turner thanked Lockhart for “his decades of tireless service and contribution to advancing the cause of mental health in our community”.
Communication breakdown, staff shortages
The ministry said the circumstances that led to Dr Lockhart’s resignation “prompted” Turner to undertake a review of the situation and it was revealed there was “a breakdown in the communication flow to the Minister”.
Turner said, since taking up her post less than two years ago in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, she has had to prioritise “what can only be described as the re-establishment of the Ministry of Health”.
She contended that she joined a team with “no confirmed Chief Officer, no Deputy Chief Officer, and only two policy advisors dedicated to health”.
“This lean team had worked almost exclusively on the national management of COVID-19 since early 2020. For years, the Health Ministry has been severely understaffed due to budget cuts, hiring freezes and other constraints which negatively impacted its internal capacity. Today, we have a confirmed Chief Officer, one Deputy Chief Officer, a full time Chief Medical Officer, one epidemiologist and three policy advisors to help the Ministry of Health deliver results at pace,” Turner said.
The statement said, since Lockhart’s resignation, Panton and Turner have been in continuing discussions with the Deputy Governor Franz Manderson “to address those concerns and achieve the Government’s objective of opening the LTMHF as soon as possible following completion”.
Turner fires back at Opposition
Turner took aim at the Opposition Leader Roy McTaggart, who issued a statement expressing concern over the facility delays, saying when she took office, the LTMHF was under “basic construction and was nowhere near being close to completion as the Opposition suggest”.
“As has been borne out, the buildings were still far from completion. As such, the comments from the Opposition suggesting that it was nearly complete is blatantly untrue, and can only be described as an attempt to deliberately mislead the public,” she contended.
Addressing Lockhart’s concerns about staffing and lack of plans for the facility, Turner said, as minister she cannot have any involvement in matters relating to recruitment, but “I have actively encouraged and wholeheartedly supported recent efforts to rebuild the Ministry team”.
She acknowledged that management of mental health issues has a profound impact on the entire community, and the enduring consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic have made this need even more acute.
“Along with our community, I not only recognise the importance of the Long-Term Mental Health LTMHF, but acknowledge that it is a project that has been long overdue. In spite of significant challenges, my commitment to this project is steadfast and I will continue to work with my Ministry team to address the gaps and chasms which I inherited while advocating for the strengthening of the Ministerial team and building capacity,” she said.
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