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Guyana secures snake bite anti-venom –as doctors receive snake bite management training
Guyana has had its fair share of snakebite horror stories with many deaths and disabilities that could have been prevented if there were anti-venom.
Doctors who underwent the snake bite management training along with facilitators [Dr. Bux (extreme left) and team] and Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Shamdeo Persaud [10th from left].
“We have been trying for years to secure an anti-venom for the Labaria species which accounts for approximately 90 per cent of our venomous snake bites,” said Dr. Bux who heads the Accident and Emergency Department at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation [GPHC] and also serves as the National Emergency Medical Director.
Dr. Bux and his team of emergency medicine specialist doctors recently embarked on a training programme for doctors on how to use the anti-venom and manage snake bites as they present. He, explained, however, that not all snake bite requires anti-venom.
There are certain intricacies involved in managing snake bites and using the anti-venom. “Managing the bite means that you have to understand the species and how its venom works. These are more specialized practices that are not fully taught in medical school so we thought it was necessary that we trained the doctors in the outlying regions especially since we now have anti-venom,” said Dr. Bux.
The training was done at the Project Dawn centre earlier this week and was coordinated by the Ministry of Public Health in collaboration with GPHC and the office of the Guyana Emergency Medical Services.
The training was carried out by Dr. Bux and his team of emergency medicine specialists from the GPHC. They included Drs. Sri Devi Jagit, Balram Doodnauth and Angela Schafer from the Vanderbilt Medical Centre.
According to Dr. Bux, doctors from the various regions who are now trained, will take this knowledge back to their respective institutions and implement it. “We have also created specific protocols on how to manage snakebites and how to use the anti-venom so that we can have standardized care throughout the country for snakebites.
“We look forward to having fewer complications from snakebites as the anti-venom is distributed throughout the country,” Dr. Bux underscored.
Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Shamdeo Persaud, who coordinated the training was present at the launch earlier this week. He expressed gratitude to Dr. Bux and team and encouraged the participants to implement what they would have learnt from the training when they return to their respective regions.
He also committed to ensure that more doctors receive the training in the future.
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