The sod was yesterday turned for the construction of a hospital at Bath Settlement, West Coast Berbice, in Region Five.
The cost of the construction of the Bath Settlement hospital is projected at $6.6 billion and over 30,000 persons in Region Five are expected to benefit from the improved healthcare services when completed.
The China National Pharmaceutical Group Corporation, Sinopharm will be taking on the task to build the Regional Hospital.
The hospital will have 75 beds, three operating theatres of international standard, a neonatal unit, a 24-hour accident and emergency department, a modern laboratory that will conduct various types of testing as well as ultrasound, CT scan, and digital X-ray services.
President Irfaan Ali yesterday said during his presentation at the sod-turning ceremony, that the hospital is the first of the six regional facilities and is part of a national health revolution aimed at improving the country’s healthcare system. He added that because of the type of policies and directions they have offered to the health sector, they are seeing tremendous private investments being made in health care.
In that way, he explained, the government must be able to support the specialized care. “We don’t want to be the primary provider in specialised healthcare. We want to be the primary facilitator for specialised health care. But we want to be the foundational pillar of primary healthcare. That is what the government is hoping to achieve.”
He added: “We can be assured of the future that is not only healthy, but a future that benefits from strong balances investments. Investments that are futurisict, an investment that will allow your children and the future generation of residents in Region Five to live a higher quality of life. To benefit from higher services, including education and health. Public human services type of support services. That comes to the region.”
Meanwhile, Minister of Health, Dr Frank Anthony noted that the sod turning for the regional hospital creates a big opportunity for everyone, “It is going to be a level four hospital which means, it’s a very high level and we will be able to do quite a lot of things.”
