Dear Editor,
I was very much concerned when I learnt that the ultrasound machine at the Suddie Public Hospital, though serviceable, cannot be put into use because there is nobody capable of reading or operating same, and that this situation has existed for more than two months.
On enquiring, I was told that only a Cuban technician is capable of operating the machine and when that person is on holiday in Cuba or absent for any other reason, patients from this and other regions are referred to the Georgetown Public Hospital.
I watched and listened in dismay at a call-in programme called ‘Getting It Right’ hosted by the Minister of Health Dr Bheri Ramsarran on RCA Channel 8 on February 1 and 2, during which he confirmed what I was told about this much needed ultrasound machine.
It was difficult to understand that after all these years of sending students to Cuba to study medicine and other subjects pertaining to human health that will of course include the knowledge of various types of machines – ultrasound, ECG, Xrays and many others – we do not have several Guyanese employed by the Ministry of Health who are more than capable of operating the machines.
While there are several areas that need to be looked at with a view to strengthening them or having them properly staffed, including the dental section and the laboratory so that more tests can be done, the issue of the ultrasound machine is one that the Minister needs to ‘Get Right’ urgently.
Yours faithfully,
Archie W Cordis
