$80M rehabilitated North East La Penitence Health Centre commissioned

– to serve over 7000 G/T residents

The North East La Penitence Health Centre which was rehabilitated to the tune of $80 million was officially commissioned on Monday and is expected to serve over 7000 residents in and around the community.
The facility was last rehabilitated in 2013. During the commissioning ceremony, Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony stated that the facility will provide a range of healthcare services.

“We are very pleased to reopen this facility. The Ministry has invested in its renovation to ensure that the citizens of Georgetown benefit from primary healthcare services of the highest standard. We aim to deliver a comprehensive package of 115 interventions across every health facility in Guyana.”
This package, which begins from childhood, ensures they are offered services such as vaccinations. Amid this, children will also have access to regular checkups, including dental.
“They will have the opportunity to do dental checkups very soon. If they have any problems, we will be able to fix them,” Dr Anthony noted.
Additionally, various screenings for eyes and hearing will be conducted for children. “We want to check their hearing to make sure that they are hearing well. Also we want to check their eyes…If we screen their eyes and detect any problems that can be corrected by spectacles, the Ministry will provide those spectacles to these children. This year, we aim to extend beyond nursery and primary schools, ensuring we cover more primary school children and begin work at the secondary level.”
Dr Anthony also urged parents to take advantage of this opportunity for the services provided at the centre. In addition to these specialized services, children will receive general health checkups.
“We are conducting general checkups, including monitoring body weight, listening to their lungs, and identifying any problems. Whatever issues we find, we are working to correct them.”
To top it off the facility will be doing HPV testing for sexually active women. “We have also followed the American guideline and are now offering HPV vaccines to women who might be sexually active. Anybody eligible can access this vaccine, and we are ensuring it is available to our population. That’s one of the services we are offering at this facility,” he said.
To round off the services, there will be a strong focus on preventing infectious diseases and addressing chronic non-communicable diseases.
“Another area we are prioritising is working to prevent infectious diseases and chronic non-communicable diseases. We have a problem in our country with chronic non-communicable diseases, so addressing them is crucial,” Dr Anthony stated.
Meanwhile, the Director General of the Health Ministry, Dr Vishwa Mahadeo revealed some of the other services the new facility will be providing.
“We are going to go house to house and check on the health status, we are going to provide maternal and child health care. We are going to provide elderly care, we are going to provide men’s health, and these are some of the new things you’ll be getting at this facility,” he explained.
He added that if other areas within Guyana are getting top-notch treatment as it pertains to development then Georgetown must not be left out.
“We must know the health status of every single citizen in Guyana. Every single citizen must be entitled to the same level of care. So, if we are building facilities in other regions, and if we are improving facilities in other regions, we must do the same for Georgetown, even though these facilities have been neglected by the Town Council,” he stated.
Also speaking at the event was Councillor Alfonso de Armas, who expressed gratitude to the Government while noting it could have been worse if the facility had been left for the Georgetown Mayor and City Council to rehabilitate.
“Can you imagine the state of our community health centres if they had been left under the control of the city council, which, for various reasons, has been unable to modernise them into facilities representative of a new modern Guyana? Thankfully, the Ministry of Health has stepped in and taken over,” he said.
He added that without the support of the Central Government and the Ministry of Health, none of these health centres would be able to offer expert, professional, courteous, and life-saving services.
He also mentioned that this is a clear sign of leadership from the Government.
“Something as small as a local community health centre, yes, it is part of the results of visionary leadership. These are the kind of things that are often overlooked. So visionary leadership and sound governance. This project, like so many others across our country, is a shining example of what the PPP Government, under the astute guidance of President Irfaan Ali and, in the health sector, Minister Frank Anthony, is delivering for the people of Guyana,” de Armas noted.