Health workers from several hinterland districts are being trained at the Palms buildings, Brickdam to detect and manage cases of leprosy.
According to a GINA press release, Minister of Public Health, Dr George Norton, addressing the health care providers on Wednesday, said the training will create awareness and build the capacity of the hinterland health workers, and simultaneously, boost the national leprosy programme, the release stated.
In the last two decades, Guyana reported 31 new cases of leprosy. Hansen’s disease also known as leprosy is caused by a slow-growing type of bacteria called Mycobacterium leprae. Leprosy primarily affects the skin and the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord. The main symptom of leprosy is disfiguration of the skin, sores, lumps, or bumps that do not go away after several weeks or months.
According to the release, Norton commended the programme’s coordinators for involving Regions One, Seven, Eight and Nine because the training will aid the health workers in recognising, treating and managing cases of leprosy early, and also to prevent and minimise impairments. “It is the Ministry’s vision to concentrate on prevention …on most of the diseases and sicknesses from an early stage,” the release quoted the Minister as saying.
Meanwhile, according to the release, PAHO/WHO’s representative Dr William Adu-Krow explained that the main objective of the training is to develop the capacity of health workers from the hinterland regions to recognise, treat and manage cases of leprosy and to prevent and or minimise impairments and disability. “Is not to say that people are not exposed to management of leprosy, but training like this increases the index of suspicion,” the release quoted him as saying.
In relation to children, the Public Health Minister pointed out that there is still a number of challenges in detecting the disease among children, the release said.
Also, there is the challenge of stigma and discrimination with persons affected with leprosy. “That is why I am happy that the hinterland is included in the training because we must not wait for affected persons to come to us, but we must go out to them and assess them so they can be treated,” the release quoted Norton as explaining.
Facilitator of the training Dr Jaison Barreto from Brazil encouraged the health workers to seek persons who might be affected and to not be afraid to treat them.
The training is a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Public Health and the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO). It ends on September 16.
