Expanding doctor provided home-based care across Guyana will be a part of the agenda to ensure that citizens have access to health care, the PPP/C says in its recently released manifesto.
In the manifesto themed “Our vision. Guyana version 2.0” which was made public during a launch last Saturday, the PPP/C while stressing that the aim for the health sector is the promotion of long and healthy lives, says that it promotes the concept that “the highest attainable standard of living and the highest quality of life are among the most important fundamental rights of citizens regardless of race, religion, political belief and economic or social condition”.
The party says that the proposed health agenda is in response to the health and development needs of all. “We believe that promoting and protecting health are essential to the sustained economic and social development and attainment of the lightest quality of life”, it says.
The manifesto did not expand on the home-based care plan but it would appear that it is intended for the elderly and those who are incapacitated as a result of injury or sickness.
Among the other items listed in the health agenda are expanding the health fund to support persons who need to pay for health care, upgrading the Bartica hospital, constructing a new 100- bed ward at the East Bank Demerara Regional Hospital and a new Port Kaituma Hospital, establishing Skeldon, Lethem and Mabaruma Hospitals as border hospitals, completing the building of the new $250 M maternity building at GPHC by 2016, ensuring that every hospital is equipped with x rays, ECG and ultra sound machines, replacing the West Demerara and the National Psychiatric Hospital with new hospitals and establishing a Burns Clinic at the Linden and New Amsterdam Hospitals.
The PPP/C says that focus will also be on improving accountability within the health sector through among other things the provision of performance reports and patient targets to a specialized group of inspectors, the preparation of an annual report for Cabinet’s perusal and the holding of annual community meetings by each hospital and health centre to report to the community on their performance and receiving community feedback.
According to the PPP/C it will also expand the human resource development programme and among some of the plans listed are sustaining new nursing students’ entry to no less than 250 per year, expanding training for support staff, providing duty-free concessions for key health personnel and facilitating home ownership programmes for health care providers.
The manifesto stated too that a PPP/C-led government will ensure the waiting time at the Accident and Emergency and Specialist Clinics is reduced, reduced referrals to GPHC of pregnancy cases (by 80%) and non-pregnancy cases (by 50%) by improving OB/GYN professional staff at Regional Institutions and establish a patients’ Welfare Committee to investigate complaints and respond within 60 days.
Attention will be given to the continued expansion and refining of the current programme to reduce the impact of cardiac disease on the part risk population through early screening, aggressive education and the reduced cost and increased access to secondary and advanced cardiac treatment.
