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Most burn children being admitted at GPHC need overseas care – GPHC official
The majority of the children who are being admitted in the Burn Care Unit (BCU) of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), are in desperate need of overseas treatment.
Photo of Shania Persaud
They suffered mostly third degree burns to more than 80 percent of their bodies.
This is according to a senior official at the city hospital.
Revealing information garnered from an internal audit of the unit, the official said that 49 children with burn injuries were admitted last year; three of them subsequently died. These children are between the ages of four and seven.
They came about their injuries at home.
In some cases, some of them tripped over hot substances, had their house engulfed in flames or were burnt when gas cylinders exploded at their home.
The official emphasized that doctors at the public health facilities would all times try their best to treat these children. However, in most cases overseas helped had to be sought due to the severity of their injuries.
“In the Burn Care Unit at GPHC, we have several medical personnel that are well-trained to take care of these issues. But there are cases where children admitted to this unit are burnt so bad that treatment is beyond our training,” the official explained.
Photo of Neleissa La Rose
One must take into consideration the cases of children admitted with 80 percent of their bodies disfigured, coupled with internal injuries.
“We have to remember that a child’s body is not completely developed,” the official added.
According to the official, the idea of transporting the children to a foreign country to seek medical attention is not a bad one, as Guyana does not have the necessary experience and technology to perform certain corrective surgeries.
The latest case of burn victims is that of four-year-old Neleissa La Rose of Maria Henrietta, Berbice River.
The child reportedly sustained burns to almost 70 percent of her body after a bottle containing gasoline, which was used to start a fire, exploded and ignited her clothes.
The incident occurred on January 22, 2020.
Saving Hands Emergency Aid (SHEA), a charitable organisation in a recent Facebook post stated that the child is in urgent need of immediate advance medical treatment overseas.
Also, a case that rocked the nation and is still remembered by everyone is that of seven-year-old Shania Persaud of Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara, who sustained severe burns when her home went up in flames on August, 5, 2019.
Due to the injuries she sustained, Shania was sent overseas to receive medical care but later died.
The child is nevertheless remembered as a hero after she walked out of her burning home covered in flames, screaming for her mother.
Before she succumbed due to internal and external injuries, doctors were forced to amputate one of her legs, a few of her fingers and a section of her ear. (Anastacya Peters)
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