Our ‘Frontline Worker of the Week’ is… Dr. Sonya Lord

Jun 14, 2020 News

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By Malisa Playter-Harry

Working on the frontlines during a pandemic has shown Guyana and its people just how much medical professionals are committed and selfless as they carry out their duties daily. Acknowledging these workers for their dedication during the time of a global health crisis, is sometimes all they need to stay motivated and encouraged to carry on.
Health care workers around the world have led the way during the Coronavirus pandemic and from the sleepless nights to the sacrificing of family time, their efforts have n

ot gone unnoticed. Many of these workers who worked for years in their respective fields exceed their own expectations when caring for patients with the virus that has killed some 418,294 persons. There are an estimated 7,410,510 confirmed cases of the diseases worldwide, according to the World Health Organisation. In Guyana alone, there are 159 confirmed cases with 12 deaths at the time of writing this article.
When the infectious disease started to travel the globe by storm, health professionals across the world, including Guyana, were not prepared for the impact, but months on and these resilient and admirable workers have proven to be the true heroes. In Berbice, leading a team is one of those heroes, Dr. Sonya Lord. Dr. Lord is head of the COVID-19 Rapid Response Unit in Region Six.
HUMBLE BEGINNINGS
Dr. Lord who has been practicing medicine for the past six years was born in Georgetown and spent a part of her young life in South Cummingsburg and another part at Onverwagt, West Coast Berbice. She attended the Number 29 Primary School and thereafter attended the St Gabriel’s Primary School in Georgetown. She subsequently attended St. Agnes Primary School, also in

Georgetown in the 90’s. She wrote exams and gained a place at the Richard Ishmael Secondary School but instead attended the Marian Academy (1998-2003). After this she went on to sixth form at Queen’s College (2003-2005). The doctor stated that during her time at the Marian Academy “I was allowed to do a little bit of everything, but I was generally an art student”. Following her success in her CSEC and CAPE examinations, she decided that she needed a job and was off to work with the Guyana Elections Commission as a Registration Clerk 1 for two years from October 2005-2007.
“From that point I applied for a scholarship to study in Cuba and left in January 2008 up to 2013 and came back and did internship in Essequibo at the Suddie Hospital. The experience in Cuba was eye-opening because it was a different culture, I thought it would be challenging but it wasn’t,” she shared. incite
She revealed that after her stint at the Suddie Hospital, she was sent to the New Amsterdam (NA) Hospital. But what is interesting to note, Medicine was not her first choice as a profession since her studies was centred on the Arts. However, as time elapsed, she recalled having an interest in medical shows on television and that sparked her desire to pursue medicine –a decision she has not regretted to date. After serving at the NA Hospital, she took a break and with a Chevening Scholarship

decided to further her studies in 2018. She earned her a master’s degree at the University College London, the third largest University in the United Kingdom. Dr. Lord said she returned to Guyana after studies in September 2019. It was months after that return that she was asked by the Medical Superintendent of the NA Hospital if she would be interested in being a part of a group of volunteer medical professionals to make up a COVID-19 response team. This was part of the region’s, and by extension the country’s, preparation for the possible infiltration of the disease. After careful consideration she decided to be a part of the team and was placed as head of the Rapid Response Unit.
ON THE FRONTLINE
As head of the unit, the doctor explained that when there is a call “we go out and do surveillance and evaluate patients. I am also in charge of the quarantine and isolation sites with my team, we continue monitoring these patients for the required quarantine days. We also do the testing and swabbing, and we also do contact tracing.” She revealed too that now that schools will be reopening, members of the unit, including herself, are tasked with going out to schools to help in sensitization and education.
“We are trying to get the teachers prepared by teaching them how to react to situations when they arise,” she noted.

Dr. Lord further mentioned that once a patient is screened at any institution and the patient is suspected to have contracted the virus, the rapid response team is called in as soon as possible. “I am normally on those visits with other doctors,” she said.
According to the doctor, the experience being a part of a team of fearless and hardworking professionals has taught her “to have the proper mindset, you need to think yes you are at greater risk but once you have a proper mindset and use necessary protective gear you stand a better chance at reducing the risk of contracting it and trying to do everything properly as you are supposed to.”
She added that she was surprised that she was not fearful of dealing with patients who may possibly have the infectious disease since she had never worked through a pandemic before. In fact she, with pride, divulged “I haven’t been scared so far, I am handling it way better than I thought because I get up every day and say ‘this is a job I need to do.’ It’s not only to protect myself but to protect my family and residents of the region and we try to do it as best as we can and we try to plead with others to actually practice and follow the same measures that they should to reduce the spread of the disease.”
HELPING TO MAKE A CHANGE
For Dr. Lord, working during a pandemic has given her an opportunity to make an impact in the lives of people who may be struggling to cope with the virus. She said that one of the things she realised is that people have not been practicing hand hygiene as is require

d even before the pandemic and as such efforts to fight the disease have allowed for the incorporating of these very basic health guidelines into the everyday life of Guyanese. She added that the experience has “showed me that in life you can adapt to situations much faster than you think, especially with the curfew and quarantine. You can actually work on your own and minimize your time being in the office and most of all it shows you the value of time and family; people, I feel, more appreciate those things now.”
Some of the challenges experienced on the job weren’t many but she noticed that it is difficult to change the mindset of the people since they are accustomed to one practice (going out, socializing, etc). “It is hard to get people to conform to social distancing and other requirements, but people have started to get it gradually.” Dr. Lord also mentioned that there is a fear or of the disease itself which leads to stigmatization. As a result, she said, “we have people not coming forward and reporting because they fear stigma, discrimination and isolation and so we assure that at no point in time would we, as health care professionals, discriminate and we also appeal to the public to do the same.” According to Dr. Lord, “I know people who have tested positive and went back into society but are being discriminated and so that is something that we have to continue to work on.”
She disclosed that since the establishing of the screening and testing unit at the Port Mourant Hospital about a week ago, there have only been three persons screened but while there is “slow traffic” she is hopeful that it is because people are not experiencing symptoms associated with the virus and not that they are fearful of showing up and being screened and possibly tested.
INSPIRATION TO VOLUNTEER
To decide to volunteer one’s service during a health crisis could sometimes be a tough decision but not since the outbreak that has killed thousands worldwide and infected thousands more.
“I have worked as a physician for the past six years and then I took a break and went and did my masters in 2018 then I came back last September so while out there I have learnt to open my mind to the social sciences aspect of medicine and health in general. So, because I am now part of a global health community, I now understand what it entails, what is needed to actually work in a pandemic or epidemic,” said Dr. Lord. The doctor added that with the skills she achieved, she has an appreciation that she could be an asset to the team to help curb the disease in the region.
She believes that “this is everyone’s fight, so we have to work together to ensure that Region Six is safe.”
The testing site at Port Mourant is in operation from Monday-Friday from 09:00 – 15:00 hrs with a team of five nurses and two doctors.
Dr. Lord is urging persons “to stay home, always wear your masks when heading out, practice proper hand hygiene, cough etiquette and social distancing guidelines”.
For her selfless commitment to helping to keep Region Six safe from COVID-19, today we at Kaieteur News salute Dr. Lord by naming her our ‘Frontline Worker of the Week’.

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