THE Ministry of Health is moving to significantly strengthen Guyana’s laboratory services with the establishment of a new biosafety laboratory, upgrades to the National Public Health Reference Laboratory and the construction of several specialised facilities to support expanded clinical services.
This is according to Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony, who recently said these improvements form part of a wider push to modernise health infrastructure alongside the construction of new hospitals across the country.
“Apart from the hospitals that we are building, we also recognise that we need to improve our laboratory services,” the minister said, noting that each new hospital will be equipped with enhanced clinical laboratories.
He explained that these facilities will be interconnected, allowing results to be accessed easily and thereby improving efficiency and coordination across the health system.
At the centre of the plan is the upgrading of the National Public Health Reference Laboratory, where new technological capabilities will be introduced.
Dr Anthony said the facility will be developed to include gene sequencing, which he described as important in relation to tracking new diseases using molecular surveillance.
Also critical for Guyana is the establishment of a biosafety level three laboratory, he noted.
“We’ll be adding a new ‘lab’ where we’ll be able to handle pathogens. This would now become a biosafety ‘lab’ level three, which would be the first time Guyana would be able to establish such a lab,” he said while noting that such a facility would allow the country to safely manage and study more dangerous pathogens locally.
Further, the health minister noted that improvements are also planned for regulatory testing and oversight, to which he added that authorities have begun construction of a new food and drug laboratory at the University of Guyana campus to enhance the services offered by the Food and Drug Administration.
He said, “Over the next couple of years, you would see all of this infrastructure being completed and these ‘labs’ being fully operational.”
Additionally, another key development is the planned establishment of a Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) laboratory, which is critical for transplant medicine.
Dr Anthony said, “This ‘lab’ is absolutely essential if we are going to expand our transplant programme,” explaining that Guyana currently has to send samples overseas to match donors and recipients.
He noted that the necessary equipment has already been procured and that local capacity is being built. “We have already bought the equipment, and we are in the process of training Local experts so that we can do HLA testing right here in Guyana.”
Further, the minister emphasised that these initiatives would play a critical role in strengthening the health sector.
He said, “All of these things would help us not just to modernise our infrastructure, but to be able to expand the range of clinical services that we are offering to our patients.”
