Update | Nine babies die from bacterial outbreak at VJH in July

Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton has confirmed that nine babies died from a bacterial outbreak at the neonatal unit of the Victoria Jubilee Hospital (VJH) in Kingston in July.

The deaths - seven from Klebsiella pneumonaie and two from Acinetobacter - represented a mortality rate of 43 per cent from 21 infections.

But a technical team deployed to cauterise the spike in deaths - which was three more than for the corresponding period in July 2021 - appeared to have to stemmed the mortalities from Klebsiella.

Since then, Klebsiella deaths have fallen, with two recorded in August, two in September, and one so far in October.

Klebsiella infections are not uncommon in the Jamaican health sector as a surge in deaths sparked outrage in 2015 and 2016.

In 2015, then Health Minister Dr Fenton Ferguson was relieved of the portfolio because of public backlash over the deaths of 18 babies.

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