The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) has a new board of directors led by Health Law Consultant and Attorney Kesaundra Alves.
Minister of Health Volda Lawrence told reporters yesterday that new Chairperson Alves holds a Masters of Law Degree from the Dalhousie University School of Law, Canada with specialization in Health Law, Ethics and Policy.
Lawrence also announced that Dr. Holly Alexander, who has for several years spearheaded public health programmes across the country, is a member of the new board.
Other members of the board, which was approved by Cabinet on January 24, are Dr Ivelaw Sinclair who practices at the Fort Wellington Regional Hospital in Region Five, Collette Adams Deputy Permanent Secretary within the Ministry of Public Health and Director of Budget in the Ministry of Finance Sonya Roopnauth.
Chief Tutor Cleopatra Barkoye will represent the General Nursing Council while Registered Nurse Kempton Alexander will represent the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU).
The GPHC Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Medical Officer remain as ex-officio members of the new board.
According to Lawrence, the outline of the qualifications and experience of these new board members instill in her a confidence that they will be able to address the issues facing the hospital from policy to standards to vacancies.
“They are well put together to …assist us to achieve the vision of having GPHC operate as our tertiary hospital, particularly as a referral hospital,” Lawrence said.
Asked if she would be comfortable with the new board appointing a deputy CEO, Lawrence said the board was expected to carry out its full mandate as prescribed within the law. She explained that she will be meeting with the board to discuss the “gamut of issues” facing the GPHC and ask that they fashion their agenda to address those issues.
“If the appointment of the Deputy CEO is within those issues that is what I expect them to do,” she said
The previous board had advertised the position of Deputy CEO and received 10 applications. Applicants were then interview, but then Public Health Minister Dr George Norton had dissolved the board before anyone could be appointed to the post.
The life of the current board runs from February 1, 2017 – January 31, 2018. The previous board led by Dr Max Hanoman was dissolved in November 2016, by Norton after months of public disagreement over staffing decisions as well as other issues relating to the management of the institution. The relationship between the two had over the life of the board deteriorated to such an extent that President David Granger had directed Attorney General Basil Williams to mediate a meeting on the way forward, after Hanoman reinstated Michael Khan as CEO though the minister had directed otherwise.
Norton had maintained that an Audit into Khan’s stewardship of the hospital had found enough evidence of mismanagement to warrant his removal. However, Hanoman had disagreed. In the end Cabinet, instructed that Khan proceed on leave until the end of his contract. His accumulated leave over the period he held the post was enough to have him home until July this year when his contract ends.
