AGNAP pledges continued support to Guyana’s health sector

The Association of Guyana Nurses and Allied Professionals (AGNAP) on Friday recommitted to providing continuous support to the local health sector when members paid a courtesy call on Public Health Minister, Dr George Norton.

Members of the visiting team included Gem Wason, Gloria Percival Omotoso, Joy McCalman and Betty Why, all of the United Kingdom. The team expressed a special interest in the areas of diabetes (wound care), sickle cell and mental health, and vowed to lend support to Guyana in providing and facilitating specialised training and fellowships in order to strengthen capacity at the referral and district hospitals.

Members also visited and consulted with health officials, including Dr William Adu-Krow, Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) Country Representative; Dr Max Hanoman of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation Board; Jevaughn Stephens, Director of Health Services, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne); Nurse Tarmattie Barker and other officials from the Georgetown School of Nursing, Charles Roza School of Nursing, Guyana Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Association, Wakenaam Cottage Hospital and other public health institutions.

The AGNAP aims to contribute towards the relief of sicknesses in Guyana; to help in the advancement of education, primarily among health professionals; to help in the preservation and protection of public health by providing information and advice; to contribute towards the relief of hardship in Guyana, particularly among those whose economic circumstances disadvantage them, and to affiliate with institutions and other charitable bodies in Guyana.

Dr Norton expressed gratitude to the team for its generous and continuous contributions over the years. He noted that the Health Ministry welcomed new initiatives, offering his blessings to the team as it prepared to give support in the areas of interest.

Just this year, AGNAP donated a quantity of zimmer frames and walking aids to the Georgetown Public Hospital. The Association was inaugurated in the UK in June 1988 by nurses and allied professionals.

In 1991, it was awarded the Guyana Medal of Service and in June 1998, became a UK Registered Charity. It is governed by its constitution and the executive members who are selected by members of the Association, while others are co-opted by executive members.