UNIVERSITY OF THE BAHAMAS' SAFETY STANDARDS

Earlier this month Erskine and I attended a book event in the Franklyn Wilson Auditorium at the University of The Bahamas. It was really good and afterwards we stood at the bottom of the carpeted theatre-style seating, with levels sloping down, to chat with other attendees. Unfortunately, because of how the seating levels end there with a small but sharp drop down, I tripped backwards and fell, hitting my head on the tiled part of the floor.

There was a sound of dismay from the crowd around me when it happened. A group of students who had been attending came up to me and stood nearby. Someone said "they want to know if you're okay"! I looked up at them. We had been chatting to them after the event. They stood there with anxious expressions on their faces. Such sweet young people! I mumbled (stunned and really not sure how I was) that I was okay thanks, trying to ignore the large bump forming on my head.

We went to the front desk to see if they had any ice there for the swelling. They didn’t and also didn’t offer me any first aid. We then walked around looked for the cafeteria, noticing the uneven footpaths, many with cracks in them. The campus was poorly signposted as well. It must be difficult for disabled students to make their way around the campus.

The cafeteria didn’t have any ice either, so Erskine bought a bottle of cold water for me to hold to my head. We then found our way to the nurse’s station. The cover for The Ring outside the door was broken off and the nurse appeared to be out, but she then appeared and opened her office door. She was very nice and gave me an icepack to put on my head. She also examined my head and hips, saying she recommended a CT Scan for my head.

I called our doctor and headed there after a brief stop at home. The doctor examined me and also agreed that I should have a CT Scan. I decided against it though, at least for now.

God must have been looking out for me that day, because so far, I haven’t had any serious symptoms from the fall, but I have put in a complaint to UB and they are looking into the incident. With the advent of a new President that I understand will replace the current Acting President very soon, I do hope that the University of The Bahamas will quickly improve safety standards throughout the campus.