The Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA), in collaboration with the Guyana Red Cross, last week held a First Aid/Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) programme for workers in the tourism industry.
The participants, about 30 in number, included staff drawn from the Guyana Tourism Authority; the Ministry of Business; the Department of Tourism, as well as from hotels (the vast majority), tour guides and tour operators.

Declaring the workshop open was Chairman of the GTA Mr. Indranauth Haralsingh and Mr. Devaughn Lewis, First Aid and Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Coordinator of the Red Cross. The instructor for the programme was Mr. Erwin Enmore.
Mr. Haralsingh said that the GTA is very committed to training and capacity development and building within the tourism industry. He said the Authority has regulations which govern the operation of hotels, interior resorts and lodges. There are also regulations for tour operators and tour guides.

He outlined that the regulations require that all persons operating within the above-named settings should have a valid First Aid and CPR Certificate. “In the business of tourism, if you are a tour guide and are going out into remote parts of Guyana this life saving skill is very important.
“This is because in the hinterland areas, there is hardly communication, evacuation or transportation to access medical care in the event of emergencies. So, being equipped with this life saving skill of First Aid/CPR is essential… especially for our tour guides,” said the GTA Director.

Haralsingh said the skills are also important for hotels and other places of accommodation, because they can be of help to fellow employees, visitors or customers.
“And how grateful and thankful persons would be, knowing that their lives were saved by an individual just because they were certified in First Aid/CPR.” Mentioning some of the possible cases requiring first aid or CPR, Haralsingh cited risk of drowning, choking and many other types of accidents and injuries.

Meanwhile, for interior lodges and resorts, located in the hinterland areas, it is mandatory for each facility to have at least one person trained in rendering CPR, since they can save lives.
Haralsingh said that First Aid/CPR is also good for Occupational Health and Safety – for almost every work place, and all workplaces, “be it at schools, at the rodeo, at the Berbice Expo.”
The workshop, the Tourism Director said, is an investment not only from the GTA in collaboration with the Guyana Red Cross, but an investment from their employers and employees, with the employees become an asset once they are certified. Being awarded with a certificate is subject to successful completion of an examination at the close of the workshop. The certification is valid for three years.

The training corresponds with the Tourism Authority’s Jubilee Anniversary progarmme of activities and more such training will be rolled out across the country, the GTA Director said.
He said the Authority would have trained hundreds of people so far. The next training is scheduled for Lethem and would be for staff of resorts and tour guides in the Rupununi area. This would be followed by training for those in Berbice, Linden and Essequibo.