WEST Demerara residents were the beneficiaries, yesterday, of a medical outreach programme sponsored by Minister of Housing and Water and acting Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Mr. Irfaan Ali, at Leonora.

According to the benefactor, it was part of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government’s commitment to providing services not only as a government but also as a political party.
“We believe strongly in reaching out to the masses. We’ve always been a party that has been rooted in the grassroots…,” Ali said.
He said the PPP/C is committed to ensuring that the ordinary people are living a better standard of life and have access to the same quality of services that any other person may have.
Ali explained that the organisers of the exercise were also linked with other medical facilities, such as the West Demerara Regional Hospital and the Leonora Diagnostic Centre, so that any identified issue can be referred to another institution for further treatment.
He thanked the Ministry of Health and the Leonora Diagnostic Centre for their support towards the successful execution.
Dr. Nayamat Ali said that, with the help of some medical students from the University of Guyana (UG), who were volunteering their time, he was screening people for blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis and cancer.
He said medication was being administered accordingly and any cases that could not be dealt with during the outreach was being attended to at another institution.
Nevertheless, he gave advice to persons on how they can go about caring themselves better.
“In terms of health care, it’s about everybody taking responsibility for their own health. Once you take that responsibility, the next thing is to make good choices. You don’t smoke; you don’t drink; you watch what you eat,”  Ali cautioned.
Persons of all ages, some of whom were just interested in getting a medical check-up, turned out for the clinic.