Government has proposed a $19.2 billion investment in the health sector this year and its focus on achieving universal health coverage through primary healthcare would see emphasis on addressing maternal health as well as lifestyle illnesses such as heart disease and hypertension, Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh announced on Monday.
According to Singh’s presentation of the proposed 2013 national budget in the National Assembly, the allocation represents an increase over the $17 budgeted for the health sector last year.
Singh noted that last year was the final year of the National Health Strategic Plan 2008-2012 and accordingly a new plan is being developed that would incorporate lessons learnt from its precursor, while consolidating the gains made in the sector over the past five years.
In his outline of the priority areas for spending, the minister revealed that $2.3 billion would be allocated for the construction, rehabilitation and maintenance of health infrastructure countrywide, of which $1.3 billion has been budgeted for the state-of-the-art specialty surgical hospital—which has had a troubled gestation period—and the Port Kaituma District Hospital.
According to Singh, maternal health is a top priority on government’s healthcare agenda, and especially advancing progress towards the reduction of maternal mortality and under-five mortality.
He said earlier in this month, national consultations were held to develop an action plan towards eliminating the current bottlenecks in the provision of quality maternal health care services as part of the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) Acceleration Framework process.
“The under-5 mortality concerns are being addressed with, among other things, a neonatal intensive care unit being established at the GPHC with support from an overseas based partner and will be expanded through the same joint public private initiative in Linden and West Demerara,” he said.
Singh also reiterated plans to intensify the fight against malaria, noting that government has budgeted for the procurement and distribution of over 6,000 long-lasting insecticide-treated bed nets for hinterland communities primarily in mining areas.
In addition, he highlighted the challenge for Guyana and the world now posed by chronic non-communicable diseases, including cardiovascular disease and hypertension, diabetes, cancers and chronic pulmonary illnesses.
“Changing lifestyles, especially in diet and an emerging sedentary habit, the use of tobacco and abuse of alcohol have contributed significantly to the shift from communicable diseases, and budget allocations within the health sector will increasingly target addressing this shift,” he disclosed.
Over $369 million, Singh also said, has been budgeted for human resource development to enhance the competency of health officials. “The system is expected to benefit from the return of a further 278 Cuban trained doctors who will be deployed countrywide,” he noted.
Singh also gave an overview of last year’s expenditure.
He noted that $1 billion was spent to expand, upgrade and maintain the infrastructural facilities of the health sector, including funding for the mobilisation payment for the planned state-of-the-art specialty surgical hospital, for the upgrade of the National Psychiatric Hospital and George-town School of Nursing, and construction of the Port Mourant Health Centre.
He also said that $335 million was spent on training of public health personnel to meet the growing demand for both basic and specialised services. “Government also executed other critical aspects of the sector’s mandate through the provision of expanded services, including tuberculosis and malaria testing, numerous vaccination campaigns, introduction of dialysis services and knee and hip replacement surgery, and medical evacuation of critically ill patients from hinterland locations,” he added.
