IN every situation, the good must always outweigh the bad. The same approach must be employed when looking at the work done by the government since it took office in August, 2020.

Oftentimes we get sidetracked by the naysayers and their attempts to sow discord win. However, the PPP/C government has been doing a remarkable job at rising above such nuisances and has instead, propelled its speed to get us that good life that we all want.

While there are many areas worthy of applause, the strides in the health sector will be the focus today.
While Guyana’s population can be considered small, we can all agree that our healthcare which is critical to our survival is not where we want it to be. However, over the past few years there has been considerable improvements which cannot be ignored.

For example, the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) which is the country’s main referral hospital and the largest healthcare provider in the country, is performing well despite the various constraints.

Waiting time in the Accident and Emergency Unit has been reduced considerably, a plethora of first-time surgeries, including a laparoscopic donor nephrectomy among others have been performed; more persons, including children, are accessing surgical interventions they have been waiting on for years and all the departments are working in unison to provide a pleasant experience for all patients.

The hospital recently opened a new pathology lab which could very soon begin offering services to CARICOM countries. Important updates and information, including daily health tips can be found on the hospital’s Facebook page.

Moreover, the government has continuously stated its commitment to improve access to healthcare and to modernise the existing system. Moves have been made in these directions and work is expected to intensify this year.

We have new and refurbished hospitals and several others are currently under construction. Modern pieces of equipment have been procured and installed. Drug shortages appear to be a thing of the past as there have been no complaints circulating in the public domain.

Recently, the nation was informed that a modern hospital outfitted with a modern lab, operating theatres, various clinics, a 24-hour accident and emergency unit and other amenities will be constructed at Moruca, a remote village in Region One.

Additionally, the urgent healthcare needs of children have not been forgotten. As a matter of fact, we were all recently reminded that it is among the priority issues government plans to tackle. This was highlighted by President Dr. Irfaan Ali who has disclosed that government is working closely with its international partners to eliminate the backlog of children’s cardiac surgeries, which amounts to more than 150. Hopefully, all these surgeries could be completed within an 18-month timeframe.

In addition to all the plans and all that has been done thus far, the construction of a University of the West Indies (UWI) medical school at New Amsterdam will be welcome. Such a school, will without a doubt increase interest in medical fields and provide an array of specialist training that may not be available at the University of Guyana.

As Guyana continues to progress, we must all support the undertakings of the present administration as they work to improve the country’s healthcare structure and move the country a few steps closer to having a healthy population.