Minister of Public Health, Volda Lawrence, on Wednesday announced that by year’s end, Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) will have a new resident psychiatrist, improving residents’ access to psychiatric care and services.
Lawrence made the disclosure to the indigenous community of St Mary’s Village, during a community outreach that followed the ninth instalment of the Government Comes to You Outreach, held in Bartica, according to the Department of Public Information (DPI).
She related that the psychiatrist that will be stationed in the region is one of four young doctors currently specialising in psychiatry in Cuba.
The minister pointed out that government, recognising the importance of decentralising health services, has been injecting money into the sector so that all regions will have accessible and affordable quality health services. She noted that not only has the ministry been sending specialist doctors from the coast to regional hospitals to improve the quality of service there, but that all General Medical Officers are now trained in basic psychiatric care.
Additionally, the minister informed that Region 9 (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) has recently trained an additional 32 Community Health Workers from 16 villages across the region.
“All of these initiatives are a testimony of the Government’s commitment to ensuring the disparities that exist between the Hinterland and the coast are eventually eradicated to allow all Guyanese to have equal access to all services regardless of geography,” DPI reported.
