PRO Ngum Refutes Jailed Dam Jeng’s Status as Nurse

The Public Relations Officer of Royal Victoria Teaching Hospital (RVTH), Mr. Baboucarr Ngum, has flatly denied reports that Mr. Dam Jeng, who was recently convicted and sentenced by the Kanifing Magistrates’ Court for abortion, was a nurse at the RVTH, explaining that the said Dam was a Technician at the RVTH.

Below we reproduce the full unedited text of his letter:

I write on behalf of all nurses in the Nursing Division of the Royal Victoria Teaching Hospital on your caption “Nurse Jailed for Abortion” published on 24th August 2007.

Mr Dam Jeng is an employee of RVTH appointed as a Technician and he worked in the Central Sterile Supplies Department (CSSD) up to the time of his incarceration. Dam has never had any direct contact with in-patients since his area of work has nothing to do with direct nursing care. His main responsibility is to clean and sterilize equipment and other medical supplies for the Wards and the Operating Theatres only.

The nursing profession in the Gambia has always tried to impress on nurses to work on their ascribed roles and scope of practice.

Gambians are assured that nurses will only carry out the tasks that they are assigned by their profession in accordance with the Laws of The Gambia, and wish to confirm that Mr. Dam Jeng is not a nurse.