Sussex Street Medical Supply Bond being utilised

GUYANA, GINA, Thursday, April 6, 2017

The Ministry of Public Health opened the Medical Supplies and Drugs Bond at Sussex Street to the media. This was facilitated by the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Public Health, Terrence Esseboom and Warehouse Manager for the Diamond Medical Supplies and Drugs Bond, Silhouette Craig.

According to Esseboom, the purpose of the visit was to let the public know that the bond is being utilised. The PRO said that people are curious to know whether or not things have changed at the bond since the last visit in December 2016.

“It is just an opportunity for people to judge for themselves rather than the ministry putting out and releasing something for you… Judge for yourself and see whether the bond is being utilised for the purpose in which it is rented and to judge how things are now, to how it was then,” Esseboom explained.

The bond has supplies for both the Georgetown Public Hospital Cooperation (GPHC) and for the Diamond Bond.

Warehouse Manager for the Diamond Bond, Silhouette Craig said they are storing supplies at the Sussex Street Bond because they are out of space.

Craig noted that when medical supplies arrive at the bond, thorough checks are made to ensure that the correct supplies are delivered and in the correct amounts.

“We receive it (medical supplies) here however, we do not do dispatches here. What we do, we replenish supplies for the Diamond bond

Materials Management Unit from here so basically we do storage here,” Craig explained, adding, “we have security and would come here very often during the course of the week to check on the supplies, check on the temperature and so forth.”

Condoms, lubricants, Insulin, Omeprazole tablets, Trifluoperazine tablets, Metronidazole Injections, Chlorophan Expectorant among other medical supplies are some of the drugs seen stored at the Sussex StreetBond.

However, the Ministry’s PRO says that even though things are much better compared to the last visit, there can still be some improvement. “In any enterprise things can improve, things can get better and if the media spotlights something I am sure that the ministry and the GPHC will listen to the critique and improve things. I mean that is how we get progress,” the PRO stated.

In the 2017 National Budget, a total of $180M was budgeted for the purpose of renting the bond. A three-year contract has been signed for use of the facility owned by the Linden Holdings Company. However, a Cabinet sub-committee has been created to review the bond contract.

 

By: Isaiah Braithwaite