– Young doctor and entrepreneur

BORN in Trinidad to Guyanese parents, Alexis Downes-Amsterdam, Ronald Amsterdam and Dr. Rei-Launya Amsterdam moved and settled with her parents in Guyana at three years old.

Dr. Amsterdam attended the New Guyana School, Concord Academy, Queens College and Nations University. She then went on to the University of Guyana, where she majored in Bachelor of Dental Surgery.

The surgeon explained that she did pharmacy for two years before she got into dentistry: “I applied for both the dentistry and medicine programmes at the same time and got through with both.”

Rei-Lunya continued to explain that in the months leading up to whether she would have gotten a positive response to her application or not, she had a dream, a reoccurring dream, of being in a dental office, being seated in a chair and introducing herself to her patients as Dr. Amsterdam. “I had the same dream for about 10 nights straight and when I got the acceptance, I immediately said yes. They saw that medicine was my first choice, and they asked if, given both choices, I would have still stuck with dentistry and I said yes, and I haven’t regretted it since.”

According to the doctor, there is a combination of standout moments in her career, most of which occurred at Georgetown. “I have been privileged through my work to touch all of the administrative regions in Guyana and one of the things that I’ve enjoyed through the outreaches that are hosted by the ministry and other organisations like the US Embassy and the Guyana Medical Relief Board is just seeing how we can make a difference in someone’s life. Someone who may not have access to care like we do in rural areas. We take those things for granted, but they mean everything to the ones in rural areas who are less fortunate,” she explained. “One of the things I told myself after being exposed to those environments was that I really needed to continue to work to try to bridge the gap between those remote areas and our main city.”

Now that Dr. Amsterdam has assumed the position of the education officer or dental officer who is in charge of oral health promotion and education, she noted that “one of the main aims of my programme is to bridge that gap so that persons have access to care early or at least education so that they can make better decisions surrounding their oral health.”

Even though Guyana is home to the dental surgeon attached to the Ministry of Health, she enjoys travelling, but more than that, she loves nature and believes in the practice of yoga, which she claims keeps her centred and grounded in life.

The young professional is also a part of two non-governmental organisations (NGO): the Global Shaper Community, which is a World Economic Forum Initiative in Georgetown and Voice, which is a literacy group that promotes literacy and oracy amongst students between the ages of seven and 14. To top it off, she is also a lecturer for the Ministry of Health Dental Auxiliary Training Programme and a part-time lecturer at the University of Guyana School of Dentistry. “Even though I am quite busy, I try to find the time to indulge in the things that I love,” she said.

FINDING ALTERNATIVES
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Rei-Launya related that “for dentistry, we weren’t sure what the way forward was going to be because this disease was in the upper respiratory tract and of course we deal with the nose and mouth. So, work had basically stopped in 2020 and we were just screening patients who had emergencies.”

Because of that downtime, Rei-Launya decided to work on her personal project, which is making skincare products.

According to the doctor, she has been making skin care for multiple years only to give to friends and family, but she has decided to monetise the idea. Amsterdam explained that she was inspired after visiting the women in business expo that was held at the Pegasus in 2017. “It was a moment that I will always remember,” she said. “I saw so many people taking small ideas and turning them into something big. I look at where those businesses were then and where they are now, and I was motivated to start one.”

After considering everything she knew, Dr. Amsterdam decided late in 2020 to launch her brand Eden Clay in February 2021. Rei-Launya believes in planning ahead now that the world has returned to some semblance of normalcy. “At any given moment, something can pop up at work; my schedule is unpredictable, but I’ve learned to plan ahead in order to perform at my best in dentistry as well as managing my business.”

Eden Clay is a “one-woman show” that is run solely by Rei-Launya Amsterdam. She has created systems that have allowed her to streamline the processes. “There are times that I get overwhelmed, but I remind myself that I am just one person who is trying to do the best that she can. I set little goals and strive to achieve them and that motivates me to keep going. There are times when things don’t go as planned and I sit and wallow because I feel like I am letting the people who are depending on me and enjoying my brand down.

“I was able to put my all into it in 2021 and even though 2022 was challenging because of time, I am grateful that my customers stuck with me, continued to be loyal and I didn’t have to worry about the sales. The Christmas season has been phenomenal, more than I could have hoped for and I am thankful,” she said.

ADVICE FOR YOUNG GIRLS AND WOMEN
The young, vibrant, accomplished dental surgeon and entrepreneur encouraged all girls and women, especially her fellow Guyanese, to get on board and put their creative ideas to work. According to her, “anything that you desire for your life is achievable if you create a plan to execute it. Having a dream without a plan is not going to work; the world is bigger than what you see here in Guyana. Expand your horizons to believe that the things that you aspire to have for yourself are attainable and you will see that as long as you work towards them, everything will fall into place for you.”

Dr. Amsterdam further shared,”Eden Clay has become something that brings me so much joy from the responses that I’ve received from my customers. Many people are of the opinion that because products are locally made, the quality will be substandard, but that’s not always the case. People are pleasantly surprised with my packaging, my product delivery and the results that they get from it.”

The entrepreneur said her aim was always to create a luxurious ritual with her products and she is proud that she could accomplish that.