Prominent neurologist Dr Walter Ramsahoye passed away yesterday and his contributions to the medical fraternity here were hailed by Minister of Health Dr Frank Anthony.
He was 78 years old.
Longtime friend of the Ramsahoye family, Geoffrey Sankies told the Stabroek News that Dr Ramsahoye died at around 1:15 yesterday morning. He said that he had been very sick over the past three years.
He was the brother of Queen’s Counsel, Senior Counsel, and Guyana’s first attorney general, the late Sir Fenton Ramsahoye, and Geophysicist Dr Lyttleton Ramsahoye.
The Health Minister said that his ministry learned of Ramsahoye’s passing yesterday afternoon, as he lauded him as a “Guyanese medical icon”.
“The medical community has lost a giant among those who served the Guyanese people for decades. Dr Ramsahoye was not only well-respected by his peers in Guyana, but he was well-known and respected across the Caribbean and in other parts of the world,” he said.
“He worked for many years in the public sector. In the private sector, for several decades, Dr Ramsahoye was one of the most visible and popular doctors among the Guyanese people. His neurology clinic was a stop for many Guyanese from across Guyana, but it was also a popular place for political and social discourses over the years. He was a prolific writer and commented on many aspects of life in Guyana,” he added.
Ramsahoye attended Queen’s College and was friends with Working People’s Alliance (WPA) founding member and historian Dr Walter Rodney, communications specialist Vic Insanally, and Caribbean mathematics prodigy Dr Ewart Thomas, and had maintained those friendships throughout the years.
Sankies recalled that Ramsahoye had earned a country scholarship to study at the University of Cambridge, where he majored in neurology.
“He came back and served Guyana and served with dignity. He took pride in his work. At one time, he was the Chairman of the Medical Board here,” he related.
Dr Anthony highlighted that Ramsahoye was a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in London, Glasgow, and Edinburgh. In 1999, he was awarded the Order of Giglioli by the Guyana Medical Association, the most prestigious of the Medical Council’s awards.
“While he is well-known for his medical practice, he was deeply involved in the promotion of his profession. He served for many years as a member of the Medical Association as a member and as an executive. He also served as a member of the Medical Council of Guyana for many years. In both of these roles, he contributed greatly to the Continuing Medical Education (CME) for doctors. The medical profession has lost a truly distinguished member. The Guyanese community has lost a respected physician,” Anthony said.
In addition to academics and his career, Sankies said that Ramsahoye also focused on human rights and would co-host a show on CN Sharma’s Channel Six TV “speaking out against the brutality at the time, of persons here in Guyana,” he said.
