A water ambulance, which will serve the village of Baracara, in Region Six, was commissioned on Monday.
A Department of Public Information (DPI) report said the ambulance will ensure that emergency cases are transported from the village, which is approximately 45 miles from New Amsterdam.
Stabroek News understands that the ambulance cost $16 million, although the DPI report gave the cost as $31.4 million.
At a simple commissioning ceremony in Canje, Community Health Worker Kevon Joseph, who is attached to the Baracara Health Centre, explained that the ambulance will make a significant difference in how emergency cases are attended.
He said the boat will see persons saving at least $40,000, which is the typical cost of chartering a regular boat to transport patients in emergency cases.
“[Sometimes] late at night, we would have to take out trauma patients, persons with accelerated heart rates, and persons with lacerations. We sometimes encounter a lot of difficulty in the river because of the grass in the river and that causes blockages. I am overcome and excited because it will be easier for persons to access better health care, persons will be able to go out there [to New Amsterdam] faster,” Joseph said.
Officials from the Ministry of Public Health, including Minister Volda Lawrence and Permanent Secretary of the ministry Colette Adams, were present for the commissioning.
Lawrence, according to the report, said it is expected that the residents of Baracara and those living along the Canje River will benefit from the ambulance. “The Coalition Government is concerned with the development of our people so in the health sector we want to ensure that we not just talking and writing on paper about accessibility, availability and all these other measures for you to be able to access health services. We want to ensure that action is taken,” she was quoted as saying.
The water ambulance will be equipped with the necessary emergency equipment to transport two patients at a time and will be staffed by a ‘Boat Hand’ and a Captain employed from the village.
According to the DPI report, last October, a state-of the-art water ambulance was commissioned for Orealla, which is located more than 50 miles off the Corentyne coast.
In January, another water ambulance was commissioned for Bartica. It also serves parts of regions Seven, Two, Ten and Three. In April, a water ambulance was handed over to the Region Ten Regional Democratic Council and another is expected to be handed over to the region.
The report said the ministry also plans to furnish riverine communities in each region with a water ambulance to assist in the transport of emergency cases to the nearest hospital for specialised care.
