Health Ministry gets needed FFTP support

Jul 04, 2015 News

– as it beefs up fight against emerging diseases

Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Shamdeo Persaud, (3rd from left) accepts the endowment from FFTP’s Senior Manager, Mr Jimeel Davis, in the company of representatives from both organisations.

Even as the Ministry of Health ensures its preparedness to tackle emerging diseases, Moleson Creek, East Berbice, is one of the areas to which it has been directing close attention. As part of its efforts to ramp-up its response capability, the Ministry had recommended that a Port Health facility be constructed at Moleson Creek, an undertaking that was done by the Ministry of Public Works under the former administration.
This disclosure was made, yesterday, by Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr. Shamdeo Persaud, who revealed that this move was seen as imperative, since the area has been classified as one of the major gateways for the entry of emerging diseases.
Addressing this shortcoming was particularly important, as Guyana sought to augment its port surveillance to guard against the threats of Ebola and the mosquito-borne Chikungunya virus. Currently efforts are being made to guard against yet another mosquito-borne virus – Zika – which has been detected in parts of neighbouring territory, Brazil.
“Persons were arriving there (Moleson Creek); sometimes international travellers – travellers from other continents.
We know that some of our African brothers and sisters do come through Suriname into Guyana, and when they get here we want to at least have adequate facilities so that we can attend to their needs while we ascertain if they are eligible for entry; whether their health status were acceptable.
Sometimes we do need to conduct some investigations and so on,” said Dr. Persaud.
But there is need for the Moleson Creek facility to be further developed ahead of its official commissioning, according to the CMO.
He made this disclosure even as he accepted a quantity of medical supplies, equipment and furniture from the Food for the Poor (Guyana) Inc. (FFTP) that will go towards the development of the Moleson Creek facility.
The CMO said that it is the intention of the Ministry to establish a permanent presence of a Port Health Officer at the East Berbice area to ensure that all necessary facilities for proper surveillance are in place in that section of the country.
He therefore noted that the supplies, which included office furnishings, “are coming at a critical time. I am very thankful for this.”
Currently, the Ministry of Health is working closely with the Port Authority to conduct training programmes on port health requirements with a view to ensuring that personnel are aware of needful procedures.
Handing over the endowment yesterday was Senior Manager FFTP’s Gifts in Kind Department, Mr Jimeel Davis, who noted that “this is just the first donation; there are others to come…”
This move, according to him, comes as part of the organisation’s effort to lend support to the health sector’s mandate to improve the wellbeing of the citizenry.
Pointing to the “strong relationship” that the two entities have forged over time, Davis expressed optimism that “we can continue to do so, so that we can help develop the lives of poor people.”
Yesterday too FFTP handed over endowments for hospitals at Linden, Mahdia and Bartica.