THIS week, our team took a long drive up to Berbice once again, this time focusing on the communities of Fyrish and Port Mourant. Stories by Michel Outridge and Shirley Thomas. Photos by Samuel Maughn.

HEALTH care has been significantly boosted with the upgraded services and the renovated Port Mourant Hospital and the nearby health centre, which is one of the first to provide a digital (paperless) service along the Corentyne, Berbice corridor.

Transformed from dilapidated to renovated

“Two years ago, nobody wanted to come here, they said ‘if you want to die to go Port Mourant Hospital,’ but look at the transformation today: we have an influx of patients from Upper Corentyne, to as far as West Coast Berbice, because our services here are good [and are] provided by ably qualified medical staffers,” Focal Point Coordinator of the Ministry of Public Health, Alex Foster, said during a tour of the facility.

On June 4, 2019, many patients queued up waiting their turn to see the doctor and to utilise the various departments, including the operational Ophthalmology Hospital housed in the compound of the Port Mourant Hospital.

Among the medical professionals that patients flock to see is Dr Rafeek Rahaman, who is the Haematology Consultant at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) and is a general physician at the Port Mourant Hospital.

Today, the Port Mourant Hospital can boast about seeing more than 200 patients as a result of the upgraded facility and added services.

This undertaking was made possible through the kind compliments of several business people of Berbice, who through their donations created a public/private sector partnership.

Presently, the male ward is being renovated and patients are being warded in a different section of the health facility.

Foster told the Pepperpot Magazine that they provide a 24-hour service and they have patients lined up all day and some of these changes came about, because of his persistence and hard work by the staff.

He related that they have merged the Ophthalmology Hospital Pharmacy and the Port Mourant Hospital Pharmacy into one, but with sections manned by two pharmacists to provide timely delivery of service to patients.

The wards
The waiting area has been upgraded with air-conditioning, water dispenser, and a television in an effort to make patients comfortable.

A filtration system was installed for the water supply at the Ophthalmology Hospital theatre, because prior to that they had to source water from Albion.

Almost every section of the Port Mourant Hospital has been renovated and it includes the Paediatric Ward, which is fully air-conditioned as well, with a refrigerator, a microwave and all modern amenities such as furniture.

There, a father was by his sick son’s bedside to ensure the boy was happy.

Meanwhile, at the Female Ward which was being manned by a sit-in nurse, a diabetic patient, Elizabeth Brusche told the Pepperpot Magazine that she was suffering from shortness of breath and was admitted.

The patient was, however, pleased with the level of service and is being kept for observation and treatment, adding that it was her first time there.

At the Male Ward, which is outfitted with modern beds among other things, this reporter encountered a young patient who had ingested a poisonous substance but survived.

Foster stated that he is the 12th such patient within the space of 10 days– most of whom are very young people from Skeldon and other neighbouring villages.

Other upgrades
Foster added that additionally, all the washrooms have been upgraded and fixed with new doors and flooring.

The Maternity Ward is a cosy place that is fully air-conditioned with a sitting area with rocking chairs among other furniture. It has all the equipment to make deliveries safe.

The section has a delivery room, incubation area, sterilisation room, the ward, nursery and a washroom block.

Foster told the Pepperpot Magazine that the enhanced maternity unit at the Port Mourant Hospital is to encourage expectant mothers to deliver their babies there, instead of going to the New Amsterdam Hospital.

Acting doctor-in-charge of the Port Mourant Hospital, Ghansham Sookdeo, disclosed that some of the new services provided at the institution are x-ray, ultrasound and visual imaging with acetic acid (VIA) for vaginal screening for cervical cancer.

He related that they have successfully completed 258 surgeries with the New Horizon team of 21 persons and screened 213 patients.
Dr. Sookdeo stated that VIA screening is one of the newer services they have and it is for women above child-bearing age.

He noted that they see more than 100 patients on a daily basis and at the Ophthalmology Hospital, they see about 200 per day and there is an influx of patients from Upper Corentyne and as far as West Coast Berbice.

“People prefer to visit the Port Mourant Hospital because of the services provided; and although we have some shortcomings, we have been working hard and thanks to the staff, collectively we have transformed this hospital into a health facility where people come to address their health issues,” Dr. Sookdeo said.

The prevalence of suicide
Speaking on the issue of the prevalence of suicide in the region, Dr. Sookdeo added that Bushlot is said to be the ‘suicide capital’ and it is a serious cause for concern, since most of the patients are young people.

“Within weeks we have seen an upsurge in suicide cases and it is at an alarming rate, because within a period of 10 days we had a dozen patients and some even took self-discharge. We need to sensitise the public through radio/television talks, or by outreaches we can make a difference, since it seems mental health is an issue. We have teens as young as 14 years old attempting to take their own life and others in their early and late 20s from Bushlot and Skeldon areas among others,” Dr. Sookdeo said.

The Dental Department under the stewardship of Dr. Ameila Valentina Nandkumar is operational and was also upgraded.

These departments such as dental and x-ray were established to reduce the referrals to New Amsterdam Hospital.

The Ophthalmology Hospital
This specialised hospital is headed by Dr. Jorge Hernandez, who told the Pepperpot Magazine that they have had 892 eye surgeries and are going out in the communities as well to screen patients.

The New Horizon team is also on board and they performed 256 eye surgeries and that section is fully air-conditioned with the other equipment and amenities.

They have also upgraded the lab and all cataract surgeries are done at the Ophthalmology Hospital; and all other eye related services are provided by the Cuban brigade.

The New Horizon team brought their own equipment and the Minister of Public Health, Volda Lawrence, is seeking to secure similar equipment for the Port Mourant Hospital.

However, a team from Sai Baba is expected in the country by year-end to perform about 500 specialised eye surgeries, because there is a list of 3,000 patients waiting for that service.

Need for a Blood Bank

According to Foster, the Port Mourant Hospital is working at full capacity, but they need a blood bank to store blood needed for major surgeries and they have no choice but to refer patients to Georgetown Hospital, since there is only one blood bank in the country.

 

 

He added that patients who need more than one unit of blood will be referred to the GPHC, since they store only a limited amount of blood for emergencies.

Foster is of the hope that the blood bank will be de-centralised.

Port Mourant Hospital Administrator, Bibi Shaneeza Nabi, told the Pepperpot Magazine that about two years ago people used to be terribly disappointed when visiting the facility, but today they have seen a marked improvement.

She stated that they have been upgrading because the hospital was low in admissions, as such, they have improved their services, including in-patient services.