Dear Editor,
The decision by the PPP/ C administration to construct a new $US161M state-of-the art hospital at New Amsterdam is a welcome development that will impact the quality of health care not only in Region Six but the country as a whole. It is significant that the hospital will be constructed on the compound adjacent to the current hospital and in the vicinity of the old National Psychiatric Hospital, which has had a long history of providing psychiatric care to thousands of Guyanese. The construction of the new hospital will transform the entire landscape of that community, which under the previous PNC administration, was allowed to deteriorate to a state in which there was a certain ‘stigma’ attached to that old psychiatric hospital.
The de-stigmatization process started when the PPP/C took office. The construction of the new hospital, the sod of which was recently turned by President Irfaan Ali will further enhance the delivery of quality medical care to all Guyanese. The new hospital, according to President Ali, will provide top of the line medical care and will be integrated with other medical institutions in and out of Guyana including the Georgetown Public Hospital and the Mount Sinai Hospital in the USA. The health infrastructure in the country is being modernized by the PPP/C administration despite the continuing challenge of human resources availability, especially in terms of nurses and doctors.
The recent upgrade in the remuneration package by President Ali for medical personnel is a commendable step in this regard, along with the several other initiatives taken to ensure an adequate supply of medical personnel to man an expanded and modernized health care delivery.
Sincerely,
Hydar Ally
