The Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) Regional Health Department will be constructing male and female surgical wards as well as an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) to accommodate patients at the Mahaicony Hospital.
The Department of Public Information (DPI) reported last Wednesday that the units will be completed in time for the reintroduction of surgical services, which will now be conducted in the hospital’s refurbished state-of-the-art theatres.
Each unit will accommodate three beds, the DPI said, while noting that they are being constructed using the savings from the funds allocated for the hospital’s maintenance. The report also noted that the ICU will be the only one in the region.
Regional Health Officer Dr. Desmond Nicholson was quoted as saying that while the initial intention was to facilitate minor operations at the hospital, because state-of-the-art theatres are now available, C-Sections and other operations, major surgeries and emergency cases will be facilitated. This, he noted, made the establishment of the ICU crucial.
Furthermore, the doctor said that the construction of the wards and the ICU is the beginning of several measures planned for implementation at the hospital. “It is fitting that we go a step further and that we do not regress in our progress…We hope that next year we are able to acquire more funds to extend those wards to increase the bed capacity perhaps by building upwards,” Dr. Nicholson stated.
