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Fresh out of university, Dr Yakeev Morris began interning at Annotto Bay Hospital in St Mary last month, and was, by all indications, excelling in his dream profession.

But the 26-year-old collapsed and died on Wednesday while on shift. It is reported that Morris filled in for a colleague on Tuesday, and then checked in for duty the following day.

Shortly before collapsing, the young doctor complained about feeling dizzy and unwell.

Morris was deputy block representative for Taylor Hall at the University of the West Indies, Mona campus.

Athol Hamilton, student services and development manager for the hall, remembered him as a very cooperative student.

"We really lived in the hall as a kind of family and so he would have been part of the family, and not just a part, but a very good and valued member of the family. Pleasant person and you know often times when someone passes and you're talking about them you tend to mention the positive things, but really, that is what my recollection of him is," Hamilton told THE WEEKEND STAR. "He has always displayed a passion for the medical field. He did well in his programme coming from rural Jamaica. You wouldn't really hear him shouting, he was a well-behaved, well-mannered individual." He said that while Morrison wasn't a member of the hall's committee, he filled in.

Hard to deal with

"I just don't know what went wrong and what caused his demise," said Hamilton. "It's something that is very surreal and hard to deal with at this time. Especially because he left the hall just weeks ago, after completing his exams, so it's tragic."Hamilton recalled two years ago when the sports representative for the hall was away, Morris filled in.

"He was a very nice fellow to work with and very involved. It is really difficult for us, the few members of the block who are still here, because you have a few that would have stayed and interacted with him by WhatsApp just hours before," he said.

The North-East Regional Health Authority (NERHA) expressed condolences in a statement on Thursday. NERHA noted that Morris was assigned to the paediatric department at the hospital on July 20. He was one of three medical interns. According to the release, Morris was unresponsive after collapsing.

"He was immediately taken to the Accident and Emergency Department, where despite every effort by the medical team to resuscitate him, he did not regain consciousness. He was pronounced dead at 6:50 pm. The cause of his death is unknown and will need to be determined by an autopsy, to be scheduled," the release said.

Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton said "a team has been in touch with his family. We want to recognise Dr Morris, a young intern, for his efforts and for the work that he has been doing and the contribution of course to public health generally."