Some level of normalcy is expected to return to St. Joseph Mercy Hospital by the end of the week, according to Assistant Administrator, Mrs. Marjorie Park, who added that many offers of support have been made, including from the Diaspora.
“People across the board have been kind and we are very appreciative, because we need all the help possible  to ensure that we get back on our feet,” she said.
The hospital at 132 Parade Street, Kingston, one of the premiere health care delivery institutions, was ravaged by fire Monday morning and losses are estimated in the billions.
Park explained that while the significant losses included the medical records, she feels that there is some hope of salvaging some of them.
Other losses she said included the offices of private doctors who functioned from the hospital, the emergency room, the admissions and discharge section, the nursing service area and one of two operating theatres.
“The other theatre which was right next to the completely damaged one, was not damaged as badly. Right now we are not sure of the extent of the damage, but at least some part of it was saved,” Park said.
The Assistant Administrator noted that the Administration office was not damaged so staffers are at work there.
She made it clear that in time, accommodation will be made for all those affected.
At present, the outpatient facility is set up at the Guyana Red Cross headquarters, some distance away on Barrack Street.
“We are putting things in place…Right now the clean up is going on,” she said.
Relative to the position of the patients who had been at the hospital at the time of the fire, Park said some were discharged and the others are at other health care institutions that opened their doors to the displaced patients.    The majority are at the Davis Memorial Hospital.

Chief Executive Officer of the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH), Mr. Michael Khan, in an invited comment, said only one individual was transferred to his institution.
“We received one patient who had an emergency appendectomy done on Monday…we also assisted the hospital with pharmaceuticals,” he said.
Khan made it clear that the doors of the GPH are open to the St. Joseph Mercy Hospital “whenever they ask for help.”
When the Chronicle caught up with another stakeholder, Mr. Harry Harakh, founder of the Guyana Burn and Health Care Foundation in Canada, he observed that his foundation will provide assistance as is requested by the hospital.
Harakh, a Canadian-based Guyanese, explained that giving back to the hospital came as a result of his ties with the institution.
“My child was born there. My father died there,” he said.
Harakh pointed out that he, and a specialist, Mr. Kirk Corkery, both of whom are in Guyana, are ready to offer support to the management
Corkery’s specialty is senior level consulting, governance, interim management and arbitration and mediation.
“There is significant support over in Canada to help the hospital rebuild itself,” he said.
Additionally, President Bharrat Jagdeo, during a visit to the hospital on Monday afternoon, made it clear that his administration will support in what way it can in the short term and over the long term.

Investigation

Meanwhile, Chief Fire Officer, Mr. Marlon Gentle, confirmed that the fire originated in the office of Dr. Rohan Jabour, the pediatrician who operated at the hospital.
He added that indications are that the fire was electrical in origin.

St. Joseph Mercy Hospital

Over the last 65 years, St. Joseph Mercy Hospital has cared for the sick and injured.
St. Joseph Mercy Hospital,  a Catholic hospital in Georgetown, Guyana, was established by members of the Sword of the Spirit movement and was officially opened and blessed by     Rev. George Weld on August, 15th, 1945.
The institution was opened to patients on Saturday, September 1st, 1945, and includes a School of Nursing.
The Hospital had its beginnings when a group of Catholic laymen of the “Sword of the Spirit” movement saw the need for another hospital in Georgetown, Guyana. The Sword of the Spirit was an Association of lay people pledged to the love and service of others, with no exception.
They envisioned that this hospital would have as its philosophy the commitment to serve the community by making available competent health care to those who sought it, irrespective of race, colour or creed, mindful of the teachings of Jesus Christ and Gospel values.
In December 1943, with St. Joseph as its patron and a donation of $3,000, the St. Joseph Mercy Hospital had its beginnings. The location chosen, known then as Colonna House, already run as a private nursing home, came into the market for sale. This property was purchased and renovated and expanded and is still the face of St. Joseph Mercy Hospital today.
An extract of an unsolicited tribute in the form of a public broadcast from a Methodist Minister, Mr. C. G. Erry is as follows:  “The Catholic Hospital was an idea originated in a single mind, translated into action. It promised relief to the suffering…”
The hospital was legally incorporated as the Catholic Hospital on September 20, 1944 – a non-profit association. It continued its work as it began, aided by benefactors at home and abroad. The medical staff then consisted of Drs.C.Romiti, Resident Surgeon, A.Romiti and     C.F Roza.
Staying true to its mission statement to provide support services related to health promotion, maintenance and care, the hospital supervised many health care projects which include the Wishbone project, originally created to do cleft lip and palate surgeries for economically disadvantaged children, and Stemming the Tide, which offers care and treatment to people living with HIV/AIDS.
The Stemming the Tide initiative is funded by the Catholic Relief Services, Guyana Medical Relief, and individual donations ,and allows more than 1000 infected men, women and children to benefit from holistic care.
In 1994, another wing with modern facilities was added to the building, thus beginning another era of the modernisation of the hospital.