DESKAN Institute and Training Inc., a non-profit organisation based in Georgia, USA,  is set to commence its Second Global Conference today at the Project Dawn Conference Centre, Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown.

It is geared towards scrutinising social, mental and physical issues that plague the country while seeking measures to reduce these risks.
“I must say kudos to Dr. Leslie Ramsammy. It was his request for overseas Guyanese to come home and build Guyana. That’s why I’m here,” Dr. Joan Liverpool, Family and Medical Education Consultant in the  USA, said yesterday in an interaction with the state media.
She related that Deskan has been very supportive of enhancement in Guyana for the last 12 years.
Dr. Liverpool also stated that the Deskan conference will unite experts from different domains in several countries to discuss various issues affecting Guyana. “We plan to move forward with the remainder of our time spent in Guyana. We want to impart and enhance the quality of life in Guyana.”
The experts will be speaking on rampant health issues such as hypertension, heart disease, prostate cancer, diabetes and cervical cancer. These lectures are open to the  public and are free.
Meanwhile,  Health Minister Dr.  Bheri Ramsaran will also be speaking on the challenges of access to health care and health-care programmes in Guyana.
And on Saturday,  Minister of  Culture, Youth and Sport Dr. Frank Anthony will give the feature address at Deskan’s Youth Empowerment Day.
There will also be lectures on domestic violence and violence against women. Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) are also teaming up with Deskan as well as the Caribbean-American Domestic Violence Awareness (CADVA) Inc. to fight the scourge of violence and create awareness about domestic violence.
Dr. Liverpool asserted that Deskan is committed to working with communities in Guyana, adding that  their team was warmly welcomed and supported  in most communities, while  the Ministry of Health has also been very cooperative.

MEDICAL OUTREACHES
She added that the team plans to carry out medical outreaches in Surama and Cane Grove, as  Deskan hopes that  Guyanese will adopt healthier food habits.  She also highlighted that Guyana should be keener in addressing mental health issues, adding that it is an issue which most people would hide under the rug.
Meanwhile, she stated that there is an urgent need to harness the potential of Guyana’s youths in order to generate development. “We have to go back from the ground … We got to get the entire community involve…the churches, the schools, the persons selling on the streets and give the parents a little more resources. It takes a village to really change a child, and a community to raise a child.”