President of Beacon Foundation Patrick de Groot has said that the organisation’s inability to access oral morphine through the Ministry of Public Health has resulted in many of its cancer patients suffering in pain.
de Groot, who was speaking at a recent public forum and later confirmed his comments to Stabroek News, explained that while the foundation has been accessing the morphine injection, it is difficult for its three nurses to travel to all the patients to administer the injection. He pointed out that the injection has to be administered by a registered nurse or doctor but in case of the oral morphine this is not required. He also pointed out that they have patients in Corentyne, Corriverton, Parika, Linden and in Region Four and that visits can only be made once or twice a month.
For almost 34 years the Beacon Foundation has been delivering relief and support to terminally ill cancer patients around Guyana with its domiciliary hospice care.