Drug-resistant outbreak at MCMH ‘contained,’ minister says 

 By Val Matthias. Updated 7:04 p.m., Friday, September 4, 2026, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4). 

Kingstown Vincent and the Grenadines September 4th, 2026-The Health Minister, Daniel Cummings, says a drug-resistant bacterial outbreak at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital has been contained, with all four affected patients either fully recovered or close to recovery.

The update comes nearly a month after health authorities confirmed the detection of a drug-resistant bacterium among four patients at the country’s main hospital.

Speaking to SVGTV News on Thursday September 4, Mr Cummings said no additional patients had tested positive. Hesaid the four patients had lesions on their skin, and that all had either completely recovered or were nearing recovery.

The Minister said the incident had required urgent action by staff at the MCMH.

The Ministry of Health first publicly confirmed the situation on August 10 2026, saying routine laboratory and antimicrobial resistance surveillance had identified four patients with wounds carrying Carbapenem-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, known as CRAB.

Health officials explained that Acinetobacter baumannii can cause infections, particularly among people who are seriously ill or receiving hospital treatment.

The CRAB strain is resistant to carbapenems, a group of powerful antibiotics commonly used to treat serious infections.

The Ministry stressed at the time that the detection of the cases did not mean the general public faced an immediate increased risk.

The ministry in a release said following the discovery, health authorities introduced a number of measures to prevent further transmission. These included enhanced infection prevention and control procedures, laboratory and environmental testing, antimicrobial resistance surveillance and contact tracing.

Officials also increased cleaning and sanitation of hospital equipment and the surrounding environment, while monitoring for additional cases and restricting elective surgical procedures.

Mr Cummings said the latest update showed that the measures taken by hospital staff had been effective. He said the situation had been contained but added that the response would still be reviewed.

The aim, he said, was to ensure that corrective measures and the hospital’s systems remained effective in preventing similar incidents in the future.

According to the ministry of health the outbreak was detected through the Ministry’s routine laboratory and antimicrobial resistance surveillance system a process health authorities said was designed to identify unusual patterns early and allow for a rapid response. 

The latest update suggests that no further positive cases have been identified since the four patients were detected last month, while the affected patients have recovered or are close to recovery.

END