– with a now functional multi-million-dollar Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at N.A. Hospital
THE commissioning of a functional multi-million-dollar Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and an intense four-day training for health workers at New Amsterdam Hospital, are expected to result in a reduction of deaths through improved monitoring at the Berbice health institution.The NICU is fitted to accommodate between six and eight patients whose referral would have been because of prematurity, low birth weight or other underlying medical conditions.
Neonatal patient Travis Lashley was birthed prematurely and would have succumbed if the NICU was not functioning. He weighed one kilogramme when he was born and after two weeks his weight increased by 180 grammes.
His mother is Sherry Hack of Williamsburg Village, Corentyne.
The NICU, which is part of the Government’s health care expansion, was fully commissioned in May of 2013 but had been non-functional because the necessary personnel had not been trained in this new specialty.
Meanwhile, Dr. Precious Sonia Jensen, Paediatrician of Nationwide Children Hospital in the United States (U.S.), speaking at the close of the training exercise, noted that the overall objective of it was to lessen infant mortality in Guyana by implementing sustainable changes through education and technology.
Based on her overall assessment, she expressed the opinion that the trained persons are now better equipped with the skills and requisite knowledge needed to fully execute their duties.
“The reception of these physicians and nurses are exceptional. They have been really smart and ncredibly impressive,” she remarked, adding that the health workers have made tremendous strides regarding the effective caring of a premature baby.
She was optimistic that the trainees and the NICU effectively carried out its mandate.
Meanwhile, Medical Superintendent Dr. Vishyala Sharma, extending her gratitude to the facilitators, assured those present that the newly imparted knowledge will be fully implemented in order to improve health care delivery.
“Neonatal care and mortality is one of the key indicators of a hospital’s performance and we, at the New Amsterdam Hospital, try our utmost to keep that down at an acceptable standard and, with this training, I am absolutely confident that we will continue to work to keep our statistics down,” she asserted.
The undertaking is a joint venture between the Government of Guyana and Canadian-based Guyanese paediatrician Dr. Narendra Singh, who initiated the NICU programme in Guyana.
Written By Jeune Bailey Vankeric