Dear Editor,
Guyana has come a very far way in its Medicare programme. The Health Sector is on the move as the People’s Progressive Party/Civic has demonstrated a strong, sensible and well-prioritised commitment to public health, leveraging new economic resources and strategic partnerships to modernise its system and improve health outcomes, while actively working to overcome existing limitations, of which I will mention a few. For example, from a geographical and topological standpoint, easy access to medical services remains quite limited in remote, hinterland regions all because it is so difficult to traverse the terrain and road networks are not easy to establish. However, with the rise of telemedicine, mitigation of this bugbear is in the sight.
Editor, my preamble thus far, relates to the Ministry of Health’s reporting “… major advancements in nationwide healthcare delivery, even (as mentioned already) the sector continues to confront longstanding and emerging challenges. According to the Minister of Health, Dr Frank Anthony, “Our work in health and wellbeing is about more than treating illness – it’s about prevention, early detection, and creating a system that supports the long-term wellness of all Guyanese.” This ‘best practice’ of handling health is Guyana’s way of doing things, and the Minister ensured his audience be apprised as he spoke at a high-level Joint Stakeholder Consultation on Health and Wellbeing, at the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) office in Georgetown.
By the way, this meet was absolutely elite: Officials from Government Ministries; Regional Health Authorities; Hospitals, Health Centres, and Global Agencies such as United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and UN Women. One of the UN health goals is to “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages by 2030.” Specifically, this translates to “… reducing maternal and child mortality, ending epidemics of communicable diseases like AIDS and malaria and decreasing mortality from non-communicable diseases. This meeting then was in sync with the said United Nations’ …. ongoing development of the Multi-Country Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (MSDCF) for the English- and Dutch-speaking Caribbean for 2027–2031”. Important to note is that “This framework will guide future UN–Government of Guyana cooperation, with health and wellbeing expected to remain a central priority.” As for Guyana, the Minister was emphatic that Guyana is committed to building a stronger, more resilient health system through both infrastructure expansion and innovative public health initiatives.”
Now for a few things that are on the rise and that really augur well for Guyanese: the opening of six new regional hospitals and the ongoing construction of eight additional modern facilities, among them paediatric and specialised hospitals; twenty-five new health centres have been established nationwide, with ten more now under construction; and expanding health posts in under-served communities to ensure equitable access to primary care services. The list can go on, but my point is that Guyana has started a journey. It is in its incipient stages and gathering expansion and momentum. The bottom line is that we are moving forward as a nation in terms of health care
The high-level, Joint Stakeholder Consultation on Health and Wellbeing was quite informative and strategic as it was used to “… to examine existing gaps, emerging opportunities, and sector-wide priorities, ensuring that the upcoming UN Cooperation Framework reflects shared national goals.” Afterall, Guyana is rapidly emerging as a global player, primarily due to the discovery of massive offshore oil reserves that have transformed it into one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. Currently, Guyana is actively working to transform its healthcare system and a big aim is to become a regional healthcare hub for the Caribbean.
I posit that this is a reality.