A CARDIAC Intensive Care Unit (CICU) has been installed at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC) as that healthcare institution seeks to improve its delivery of service to what is being offered by private healthcare institutions.

Having recently expended more than US$500,000 to send cardiac patients abroad for treatment, GPHC, the Ministry of Public Health and the University of Calgary saw the need to develop a CICU at the nation’s premier public healthcare institution.

In launching the Unit at the GPHC on Friday, head of the hospital’s Cardiology Department, Dr. Mahendra Carpen, highlighted that the facility would be able to cut back on costs, given that 100 patients can now be treated at home.

“We want to be the leader in tertiary cardiac healthcare and bridge the gap between private and public healthcare… Thus, thanks to the University of Calgary, the Caribbean Heart Institute and the International Children’s Heart Foundation, we are one step closer to doing that,” Dr. Carpen said.

This new intervention would not only boost the hospital’s capacity, but would also afford persons the chance to access affordable healthcare and make economic limitations less of a problem.

In welcoming the new unit, Public Health Minister Dr. George Norton pointed out that cardiovascular diseases are the number one cause of death in Guyana, and the Government is cognisant of the importance of providing the best quality cardiac care to change this.

However, it was advised that the Ministry cannot boost the quality of cardiac care on its own, and that is why it has been working along with the University of Calgary to implement the Guyana Programme to Advance Cardiac Care (GPACC).

The GPACC Project aims to significantly improve provision of patient care and enhance academic medical activity in Guyana through education, research, and clinical initiatives.

As a result of this collaboration, “we are here today to open this CICU, which is well equipped with eight monitored patient beds and five ‘step-down’ beds”, it was declared.

Among the other equipment are eight new bedside monitors to monitor heart rhythm and blood pressure; two saturations, and equipment for invasive arterial and pulmonary artery monitoring, said Minister Norton.

The CICU functions as a closed medical unit, in that all orders and patient-care decisions are made by the cardiology medical team under the direction of the medical director, or his replacement.

A vast number of patients suffering from cardiac-related conditions will now have a facility where their medical needs can be better catered to, allowing cardiac care in Guyana to be taken to a higher level.

The GPACC has contributed to the development of the CICU on two fronts: structure/function and education.
Also, GPACC has provided approximately US$200,000 for the Echocardiography Laboratory and Echo programme, and US$50,000 for the ECG/Stress Laboratory.

“GPACC has been working to boost human capacity to handle cardiac-related conditions through ward work, teaching rounds, sponsorship of medical residents for clinical rotations at the University of Calgary, and advanced training for other medical staff, among other things,” stressed Dr. Norton.

The educational component of GPACC is essential for the establishment of a sustainable cardiac programme, since there must be ongoing education for physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and technologists.

Meanwhile, Co-Director of GPACC, Dr. Wayne Warnica, said the CICU is just an extension to the CHI, and will be a key contributor to the development of the GPHC’s capacity.

However, he pointed out that there is need to improve cardiac care, hence the university has sponsored a physician from Guyana who is completing a programme at the University of Calgary, while additional training is ongoing for local doctors and nurses.