Latest update November 5th, 2024 1:00 AM
$100M refurbished Psychiatry Department commissioned at GPHC
Kaieteur News – The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) in collaboration with the Ministry of Health on Tuesday commissioned a $100M refurbished Psychiatry Department.
The Hospital’s Psychiatric Department was refurbished due to the lack of space and amenities according to GPHC’s Chief Executive Officer (ag) Dr. Navindranauth Rambaran who noted that this project was been envisioned and undertaken in just over two years.
“In the past, the previous area if you would have visited staff or otherwise, you would have noticed the place lacked certain amenities and comforts and staff were working under very constraint conditions and of course, there is the issue of the patients – their safety and also their comfort,” he explained.
Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony (centre) poses with staff and doctors of the Psychiatric Department on Tuesday.
Rambaran explained that because of the challenges, a decision was made to rehabilitate the department.
“Now with these in mind and thinking extensively about the improvement of psychiatry and mental healthcare in Guyana and GPHC, this was the plan, to give us an infrastructure that is world-class and one that will certainly be fit for function,” he mentioned.
Some sections of the newly refurbished Psychiatric Department at the GPHC.
With there being a new psychiatric ward and clinic, the Department is also equipped with a Child and Adolescent Psychiatry room, a pharmacy, consultant room, treatment room, specialty room and soon to be offered electroconvulsive therapy room.
According to Dr. Ramabaran, all of these amenities and services are important so as to work coherently with the rest of the psychiatric and mental health services within Guyana.
Head of the Psychiatry Department at the hospital, Dr. Bhiro Harry welcomed the newly refurbished department and noted that it is a great improvement from what existed before.
“When you know where we come from and when you see what we have, then you can understand how I feel. We came from a dumpsite and here we are today,” the Head of Department expressed.
According to Dr. Harry from sharing space with the skin clinic to operating above the mortuary, the Psychiatry Department had its fair share of challenges in the past but the staff still made it work to carry out its functions and meet the needs of its patients.
Dr. Harry said too that though electroconvulsive therapy will begin soon, efforts are being made to offer other services.
Meanwhile, Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony recalled that his visit to the department a few years ago, the area was very claustrophobic and not the ideal place for patients to receive care.
“What you have today is by far a transformation. A transformation from that claustrophobic space to a very opened space where I think once you come here, you start feeling better already,” the Minister said.
- Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Navindranauth Rambaran, Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), Ministry of Health, Psychiatric Department
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