The country needs a specialty hospital
Dear Editor,
The evidence is patent: ‘Baby Heart Foundation completes 31 surgeries successfully’ (and in this vein, Cardiac Unit Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the foundation, Dr Rodrigo Soto, appealed for the Guyana government’s support in establishing a paediatric and cardiac world-class unit at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC); and ‘11 corneal transplants done at GPHC’ (dealing with corneal transplants, performed recently at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), by specialists brought in from a United States (US) based foundation, located in Queens, New York).
I add two other recent stories: ‘Baby with exposed brain still awaiting surgery,’ and ‘Woman, 52, years seeks financial aid for heart surgery.’
There is no need to delve further back. These recent news stories, in the last few weeks highlight the fact that Guyana is in dire need of a specialty hospital, and there is no need to think medical tourism or catering for people from other nations. The issue at stake here is that of valuing people’s lives, yet we know that the coalition government has abandoned the specialty hospital project, exposing a visionless government, which seems not to be able to dream and accomplish great things for a nation.
Editor, I remind the public, that back in 2011, the late Dr Faith Harding of the PNCR, did throw her support behind the construction of a specialty hospital. In doing so, she had said that it was a shame the opposition (at the time) decided to cut the budget for the hospital, since health tourism in Guyana could propel the country into the 21st century.
She had also said that “Modernising and improving health services, upgrading specialist skills, uplifting confidence in the population, bringing about resourcefulness and boosting the economy” were among the benefits of such a project.
What was very perceptive about her forthright call for a specialty hospital was that Dr Harding had actually met with doctors from a children’s hospital in the US, and they had suggested the idea and highlighted that Guyana has the ideal natural environment to aid the recovery of patients. She had also highlighted the transfer of technical skills to Guyanese as another benefit of the facility.
Dr Harding piqued a lot of people when she said that she was proud of then President Bharrat Jagdeo for his insight and was especially heartened when he inked the deal for the hospital back in 2009.
A timely reminder here to take note of is that around this same time, the Government of Jamaica made the announcement that it was moving to construct a USS200M Specialty Hospital, with the aim of tapping into the medical tourism sector. The Jamaica Minister of Health, Dr Fenton Ferguson, had added that construction of the facility represented the first formal health tourism project for Jamaica.
So having a specialty hospital is not just about a number of good things; its realisation will call for national entrepreneurship and political savvy, traits which seem alien to the current government.
I note here that the cry for medical aid is very plaintive, and when not listened to, the conclusion will be that we have a non-caring and visionless government. Judging from its haste to abort plans for Guyana’s specialty hospital, the verdict is that the coalition government is both sclerotic of heart and torpid of brain ‒ no feelings and no thinking.
This government must accept that specialty hospitals offer doctors an alternative with benefits that extend directly to patient care. A specialty hospital affords doctors more choices to build and maintain a profitable practice. Profitability fosters improved patient services on many levels that includes highly trained specialists and advanced equipment.
Many different types of specialty hospitals have existed for decades reflecting the medical trend of the period, such as paediatric and rehabilitative centres.
I still recoil when 1 reflect on government’s announcement that it was scrapping the multimillion-dollar specialty hospital project and was seeking India’s approval to redirect the remaining money towards the improvement of the local primary health care sector. The act was symptomatic of a force that wanted to prove, above all else, that nothing good was ever done, nor even attempted by the previous PPP/C administration. Well, the converse of this is that the current Government must initiate and not just ‘scrap’ and ‘rethink’ and ‘remodel.’
The news that the Indian Government has objected to the redirection of funds, initially approved for the construction of a specialty hospital here (into the upgrade of primary health) is an indictment on the coalition ‒ it cannot negotiate and continue a good work.
Jordan needs the inspiration of a sacred muse ‒ he (and Health Minister Dr George Norton) must conjure up plans to make health care work, even at the most rudimentary level. So far his prognosis where rice is concerned is in synchrony with the specialty hospital project.
I think now of the ominous reality that confronts Guyana, when it comes to the Guyana REDD+ Investment Fund (GRIF) and Norway. Up to the end of March this year, US$39.4 million was earned from Guyana’s efforts in limiting deforestation under its partnership with Norway. The major footnote here relates to Dr Bharat Jagdeo, who remains peerless in the domain of having countries like Guyana earn serious money for avoided deforestation.
The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government had been a partner for Norway’s US$250 million forest climate deal with Guyana. Five days before the 2015 elections, Norway announced its decision to pay another US$40 million (NOK 300 million) to Guyana for avoided deforestation during 2013, bringing total Norwegian payments to US$190 million.
According to the deal with the former government, Norway rewards Guyana for keeping its rate of deforestation low. Funds are disbursed for projects listed in Guyana’s Low-Carbon Development Strategy, whose flagship is the Amaila Falls Hydropower Dam.
Now, it is very daunting and frightening to discover that the US$40 million is being held back, pending discussions with the new government. Again it is stated that “elements of the deal are being re-assessed.” So now “It is now up to the new Government of Guyana, whether they still want to go forward with the Low Carbon Development Strategy,” says Elisabeth Brinck Sand at the Norwegian Climate Ministry.
The simple but brutal truth is that the Granger-led administration is bankrupt of ideas, plans and vision.
Yours faithfully,
Rose Ann Bacchus