More persons indicate public confidence in Region 6 health system

─ Increase in persons accessing health care at Port Mourant Hospital

─X-Ray department commissioned

DPI, Guyana, Monday, April 8, 2019

Within recent months, services at the Port Mourant hospital have improved and this has seen more residents in the Corentyne area saving themselves time and money by attending this health facility for services instead of travelling to New Amsterdam or Skeldon Hospital.

On April 4, 2019, Minister of Public Health Volda Lawrence and Minister within the Ministry of Public Health Dr. Karen Cummings along with other senior officials of the public health ministry and those in the region were apprised of the increase in the number of persons accessing care at Port Mourant Hospital.

Dr. Devendra Radhay, Doctor in Charge at the Hospital briefed the team during a tour of the facility. He presented them with comparative figures of the influx of patients in 2019 as against 2018. More specifically he singled out figures of the first quarter of 2019 and compared it to figures from the first quarter in 2018.

Services Jan-March 2018 Jan-March 2019
Rehabilitation 297 314
Pharmacy 9,593 12,280
Dental 827 1,409
Medical clinics 1,706 1,963
Outpatients 9,354 14,002
Voluntary Counselling and Testing 99 171
Admissions 40 96

Dr. Radhay said he recognised that residents Corentyne needed to be re-introduced to the hospital and this spurred the regional health department to conduct an open day at the medical facility.

“People tended to either go Skeldon or New Amsterdam and I said we have to change that, we had to bring people, invite them to the hospital so they could see the services and the condition of the hospital… We held a hospital day and a blood drive where we saw a total of 614 persons for that day, an activity which started at 9am and finished at 3 pm.” Dr. Radhay explained.

He also admitted that while there are constraints within the system, through a partnership with community leaders, concerned citizens and the Ministry of Public Health and other stakeholders, the challenges are almost non-existent.

While at the hospital, the Public Health minister commissioned an X-Ray department which will also encourage more persons to go to the hospital to access the service. This particular service free of cost.

Previously, persons requiring X-ray were referred to either the Skeldon Hospital or the New Amsterdam Regional Hospital. Dr. Radhay said that this just the beginning of greater things to come.

“From the way, I saw Port Mourant hospital then to now, we are heading in a good direction. Not only with help from the public but with help from the ministry and the regional health service. I believe that with the cooperation of everyone we can make a difference in the health service.”

The Doctor in Charge of the hospital also said that he realised there are some sections of the society that may want to discourage persons from accessing public health care due to minor challenges which exist in the public system. Nevertheless, staff still try their best to ensure every person receives service.

“This is not about blaming… we are not speaking politics but we might be short on a few things but we have the majority of the medication. There is no patient that comes here and leaves without being seen.” He noted.

Delicia Haynes.

Images: Keno George.

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