Gordon Robinson | A rose by any other name…

The Dunce’s behaviour at the domino table was always erratic as he marched to the beat of a different drummer.

“March” might be a strong word since he always proudly answered queries as to his occupation with “walk foot and kick stone!” Around the table his carefree technique infuriated partners but especially his brother, Dessie, who was an expert player. Dessie often commented that, after he fell from a tree and hit his head as a child, he should’ve been sent to Bellevue.

By now you should be able to predict The Dunce’s reaction to that slur: “If a macca mek it jook yu!” That’s when Haemorrhoid usually intervened with one of his shaggy dog tales. You remember Haemorrhoid, the lazy Articled Clerk who complained incessantly about “piles and piles” of files on his desk.

Haemorrhoid told a long, detail drenched tale of two Bellevue patients which I’ve severely edited:

“John and David were both patients in Bellevue. One day they walked past the hospital swimming pool and John suddenly dove into the deep end. He sank to the bottom and stayed there. David promptly jumped in and saved him, swimming to the bottom of the pool and pulling him out.

“The resident Psychiatrist came to know of David’s heroic act. He immediately ordered that David be discharged from Bellevue as he now considered him cured.

“The doctor met with David and said, ‘We have good news and bad news for you! The good news is we’re going to discharge you because you’ve regained your sanity. Since you were able to jump in and save another patient, you must be mentally stable. The bad news is the patient you saved hung himself in the bathroom and died after all.’

“David replied, ‘Doctor, John didn’t hang himself. I hung him there to dry.’”

After guffawing loudly, Haemorrhoid told Dessie mental health issues are complex and not always apparent. He chastised Dessie for denigrating The Dunce’s quirks which weren’t due to mental health deficit. Also, he reminded Dessie he was stigmatizing his brother.

I remembered those episodes recently when Health Minister Christopher Tufton, under a mountain of public pressure over Integrity Commission findings of procurement irregularities involving him, suddenly proposed a name change for Bellevue.

Distraction? Misdirection? Or application for admission as Crazy Chris?

Tufton told the Observer he sees the name as a significant part of the problem and believes changing it is necessary to improve the hospital’s image and the perception of mental health treatment in Jamaica.

Improve the hospital’s IMAGE? Really? Seriously? Is this another job for public relations hero SuperMarket Me?

“I am of the view the Bellevue name is, in and of itself, a stigma,” Tufton told the Observer. Which part? Bell? Belle? View?

He did add this wasn’t the only measure being considered. It was part of a comprehensive redevelopment and rebranding effort for the hospital. When do we start the redevelopment? Have funds been budgeted? Clearly rebranding must begin immediately. THAT should remove the stigma. Right?

This MUST be the Guy Lombardo Show!

Has Tufton forgotten that he established a Mental Health and Homelessness Task Force with wide, inclusive membership, including mental health experts, in June 2016, inter alia “to make recommendations for improving the mental health services…”?

Detailed recommendations were made regarding Bellevue. Not one included name change. Task Force recommended staff redeployment to community healthcare in light of inadequate budgetary allocations for Bellevue and likely improved outcomes as Bellevue, the hospital, concentrated on chronic care cases.

Other recommendations included further integration of mental illness within primary care services; development of mental health rehabilitation; and identifying suitable jobs for mentally ill persons.

How many have been implemented before this nonsensical name change kite was flown? What’s Bellevue’s 2025/26 budgetary allocation? It doesn’t appear as a line item in the national budget. Are funds to realize any Task Force recommendation budgeted?

One last thing (said Lieutenant Colombo). Instead of marketing himself, Tufton should be promoting the excellent work of Bellevue CEO Suzette Buchanan. In short order, Suzette has changed Bellevue’s face without changing its name; improved and diversified care delivery; and advocated widely for attention to mental health. She created Hope Park as a therapeutic space and developed “Mindset” - a platform for mental health advocacy to flourish. In early October, she was named International Mental Health Advocate of the Year by the Mental Health Foundation of Australia.

She who feels it knows it and Suzette, who has a young daughter diagnosed with bipolar disorder from a very tender age, understands mental health. Tufton obviously understands only marketing. You can’t cure mental health issues with public relations. Name change? Shmame change! Ask any of Billy Shakespeare, Romeo or Juliet, about the effect of name changes.

Peace and Love.

Gordon Robinson is an attorney-at-law. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com