The Mid-Atlantic Wellness Institute has made enough behind-the-scenes savings to ‘unfreeze' the position of occupational therapist.Government Senator Cromwell Shakir has praised the staff at MWI for successfully coming up with innovative ways to make ends meet after its budget was cut.The Junior Health Minister said making cutbacks “in administration costs and back of house services” had resulted in a Bermudian being given the occupational therapist job.MWI, which has 350 staff, had been forced to make savings of $1 million after Government slashed its funding by three percent. The MWI subsidy for this fiscal year is $38.578 million.It was announced last month that MWI's current complement of ten psychiatric support staff would be reduced to eight; four psychiatrists and four resident doctors.It meant MWI's chief of psychiatry Michael Radford has to leave the Island when his contract expires in August and the contract of a junior doctor will also not be renewed.Last month the three positions of art therapist, occupational therapist and physiotherapist were also frozen. The art therapist position is vacant, the occupational therapist is leaving in August and the physiotherapist has been transferred to the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital where MWI patients can also be seen.But Sen Shakir told the Senate he was pleased to announce MWI had “found ways on saving on administration costs and back of house services”.He said: “They have made more savings than expected. Bermuda Hospitals Board can unfreeze the occupational therapy post and it has already been filled by a Bermudian”.Sen Shakir added that there had been “a great deal of speculation and comment about five staff” and “the fact that all staff at MWI do a fantastic job” had been ignored.He added: “The dedicated and hard-working team of staff at MWI delivers great services to their clients, day in, day out on a 24 hour basis.”A BHB spokesperson yesterday confirmed that an occupational therapy position originally frozen to help meet the MWI budget, has now been filled by a Bermudian.She said: “We are strategically managing our resources and making savings wherever possible, while maintaining safe services and Bermudian jobs. As always, we monitor our financial position constantly throughout the year and if our financial management enables us to fill certain positions throughout the fiscal year, we will make adjustments.”However, Government Senator LaVerne Furbert later used her motion to adjourn speech to criticise “a Senator on the other side” for talking out about staffing problems at MWI.Sen Furbert, who is Junior Education and Youth Affairs Minister, said the MWI staffing cuts had previously been mentioned in the Senate and “as a result there was a report in the media”.She said: “As Senators, we need to be responsible when it comes to having information. We have to get the correct information before making a statement.“We can't go with a partial story, saying ‘oh it went this way, when it really went that way'.“We have to get the facts straight rather than going with hearsay.“We have to remember the media is present in the Senate and information gets out that is not correct information. Then it's left to the Government to correct the misinformation that is out there.”Sen Furbert was referring to a motion to adjourn speech made by Shadow Health Minister Kathy Michelmore at the end of June.Sen Michelmore said jobs were on the line as the Island's mental health services had to make savings of $1m.She explained her main concern was the implementation of the Mental Health Plan.The Royal Gazette then went to the Bermuda Hospitals Board who confirmed five MWI clinical jobs had been reduced because of budget cuts.