Chief of Staff Wesley Miller retires from BHB

Wednesday 3 April 2024: After many years of distinguished service, Dr Wesley Miller has decided to retire from his position as chief of staff at BHB. The Bermuda Hospitals Board wishes to thank Dr Miller for his service and to wish him well in his return to private practice. BHB has already started the process of recruiting for Dr Miller’s replacement and will provide an update as soon as possible.

While the recruitment process is being completed, Chief of Psychiatry Dr Anna Neilson-Williams has agreed to be the acting chief of staff.

We wish Dr Miller every success in his future endeavours.

BHB shares update about hospital – physician communications

Tuesday 2 April 2024: Bermuda Hospitals Board has had a physician advisory council to participate in the ongoing development of our electronic medical record, PEARL, for over a year. Community and BHB physicians are represented to collaborate on optimising our ability to share highly confidential medical information about our patients.  The public should be reassured that BHB only uses secure methods of transmitting their medical information.

Communicating with physicians via private emails and fax does not constitute the highest level of safeguarding patient data. As we work through making improvements, we have continued faxing to community physician offices so there has been no cut off of available patient information through older systems.  Faxing is not perfect, however. There can be issues with transmission, or risks of paper running out at the receiver end or getting lost in the community offices. This is why their use is being phased out in other countries such as the UK.

Email and messaging can be used if they are on secure platforms. Many family doctors now have their own electronic medical records and we are already in the early stages of implementing an integration engine that will allow the different EMRs in these offices to connect more directly with PEARL.

BHB has also hosted two community physician workshops over the last year to assist them with using BHB systems and PEARL. We certainly want to hear from any physicians who are having issues receiving or sharing information with us at BHB. We already are in contact with certain offices and site visits are arranged if there are issues that can’t be resolved remotely. Prior to the question being tabled to the CEO at Docs for Dinner, BHB was aware of the particular concern voiced and our team had committed to support with a solution.

The requirements of the personal information privacy act do need to be complied with and this is a good thing for Bermuda. Within health care, an individual’s medical information should always be protected to the highest standards available. The onus is on us in health care – in the hospitals and community – to work together and find solutions that safeguard medical information while making it as easy as possible for physicians to care for their patients.

BHB purchases Craig Appin building under favourable terms

Tuesday 2 January 2024: Bermuda Hospitals Board (BHB) today announced it has purchased Craig Appin House in Hamilton in a favourable deal that protects it from future rental increases.

BHB has rented space in Craig Appin for over ten years, after it had to decant its Human Resources, ITS and Finance offices from the Queen Elizabeth Nurses Residence in 2011 due to its poor physical condition. Over 100 BHB employees work in the building, including a medical concierge service that assists patients with medical travel.

The QENR was on the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital campus next to Berry Hill Road. Its construction was completed in May 1960 and originally housed nurses coming to Bermuda from overseas. It was demolished in 2016 following assessments that it would be too costly to try and repair and maintain.

Chief Financial Officer, Arthur Ebbin, comments: “I would very much like to thank the owners of Craig Appin who offered BHB favourable and flexible terms for the purchase. BHB will pay the same amount it has been paying each year in rent as it pays for the building. This means we have been able to afford the purchase based on our cash flow. Rental income from other services in the building will help offset maintenance costs for the immediate future. Critically, this deal protects us from the rental market increases in Hamilton over the coming years and provides us with options for estate planning to benefit our services to the community.”

As is required, the deal was approved by the Minister of Health and Minister of Finance, as well as the BHB Board and Executive.

Two babies born on Christmas Day

Monday 25 December 2023: Two babies have been born on Christmas today. A baby boy was born at 1.42am and a baby girl was born at 4.38am.  Pictured is the baby boy, with a photograph supplied by the parents.

Scott Pearman appointed as BHB CEO from January 2024

Monday 18 December 2023: Bermuda Hospitals Board (BHB) today announces that Deputy CEO R Scott Pearman has been appointed as the new chief executive officer (CEO) & president of BHB following a competitive recruitment process. He will take over the position after Michael Richmond MD leaves at the end of December 2023. Dr Richmond is leaving having successfully completed his contract.

Mr Pearman first joined BHB in 1996 as employee labour relations manager. He was appointed the director of human resources in 2000 and then vice president of physician relations in December 2006. Following a promotion to chief of business development in 2010, Mr Pearman was appointed as chief operating officer at KEMH the following year. In February 2017, his COO role was expanded to include the Mid-Atlantic Wellness Institute. He was appointed as deputy chief executive officer in 2020.

Mr Pearman has a Bachelor of Arts in economics from the University of Rhode Island, a Master of Labour Relations and Human Resources from Michigan State University, a Master of Business Administration from Queen’s University, and a professional human resources certification from the Society of Human Resources Management.

Chairman of the BHB Board Matthew Pifer comments: “First I would like to thank Dr Richmond for his six years of service to the BHB and the people of Bermuda, first as chief of staff and then chief executive officer. He was at the forefront of BHB’s COVID pandemic response, oversaw a successful electronic medical record implementation, and developed a new strategic plan that focused the organisation on quality and continuous improvement. We all wish him the very best as he returns home to the UK.

“On behalf of the Board, we are immensely pleased to announce Mr Pearman as the new CEO, taking on this critical role of leading Bermuda’s hospitals. He has shown great leadership in the role of deputy CEO, exemplified by the implementation of the integrated health care programme. Mr Pearman’s appointment following a competitive recruitment process highlights the success of the executive development process at BHB. This is a critical time for public health in Bermuda and Mr. Pearman is uniquely qualified to lead the BHB in its continuing mission to serve the country’s healthcare needs. He enjoys the full support of the Board and we are excited for the future of the BHB under his leadership.

Minister of Health Kim Wilson, JP MP, comments: “It is a great pleasure to have a qualified Bermudian to take over as CEO at BHB, someone with deep experience of Bermuda’s healthcare challenges. Mr Pearman’s many years at BHB along with his growth through continuous learning and development opportunities have prepared him well to take the helm of BHB. I congratulate Mr Pearman on his appointment and look forward to seeing the continued improvement of BHB services in partnership with Government and other community partners and individuals.”

Mr Pearman comments: “I am looking forward to taking on the role of CEO in January.  I’d like to thank Dr Richmond who I have worked closely with as BHB has made progress towards implementing its strategy over the last few years, as well as the Board and my BHB colleagues for their support. I’m looking forward to continuing the drive to improve quality and value at BHB. I remain passionate about our pursuit of excellence, even as we navigate the challenges ahead, working with the wonderful staff at BHB and our many partners in government and the community.”

Only visit your loved ones in hospital if you feel well

Friday 15 December 2023: Bermuda Hospitals Board today reminded people not to visit patients in hospital if they have respiratory symptoms, including patients in acute and critical care, Gosling (children’s) and maternity units, and residents in long term care units and group homes.

With figures for respiratory illnesses rising in Bermuda, individuals should also inform staff if they have symptoms and have an appointment or procedure planned.  They should call the services before arriving on-site and reschedule, unless it is an emergency.

People who have respiratory symptoms but have to attend the Emergency Department due to a medical issue must wear masks on entering a BHB facility to protect other patients.  A mask can be provided in the Emergency Department.

Dr Wesley Miller, Chief of Staff comments: “While we are no longer in a pandemic, COVID is still circulating and even the regular respiratory illnesses such as flu, colds and RSV can be dangerous for the more vulnerable members of our community, including older people, those who are already unwell and newborns. We ask people to help protect those most at risk by being considerate and not coming to BHB if they have symptoms, unless it is an emergency. For people who need to be on-site who are themselves vulnerable, a mask is recommended and those who are visiting patients they know are vulnerable should consider wearing a mask while close to their loved one in case they are infectious but asymptomatic.”

BHB histopathology tests and post-mortem reports

Friday 10 November 2023: Bermuda Hospitals Board today communicated that there has been an increase in the turnaround time of its histology results and post-mortem reports. Other lab tests, such as blood and urine tests, are not impacted and results are being turned around within the usual timeframes.

The increase in turnaround time has been caused by a temporary staffing shortage in the Pathology Department. BHB currently has one consultant histopathologist and one histology technologist. Two additional staff members are going through the final stages of recruitment and BHB is in talks with overseas partners to assist if needed.

The staffing shortage is impacting the results of histology tests, which are the reviews of tissue samples. It is expected that the turnaround time will be reduced by December from three weeks (current turnaround time) to one week.

Post-mortem reports are currently taking some months to complete. There is not a delay in the autopsy itself, just the write up of findings.

Dr Wesley Miller, Chief of Staff, comments: “On behalf of BHB we apologise to patients and families for the current turnaround times for histology tests and post-mortem reports. We understand patients want their histology results as soon as possible and we are focusing on reducing the turnaround time for these tests as a matter of urgency. We also apologise to the families waiting for the post-mortem reports. We understand they also need these important documents. We are working very hard to reduce the turnaround time as well as to complete the recruitment processes for the staff who have been hired.”