We are indeed pleased to see that the Specialty Hospital project is back on the national development agenda once more. Since the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government assumed office in August this year, it assured citizens that it is serious about working to ensure that Guyanese benefit from world-class health care without putting a financial burden on families.
In a recent interview with this newspaper, Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony was quoted as saying that there is significant local and foreign interest from the Private Sector in constructing specialty hospitals in Guyana. He indicated that the Government was interested in facilitating these interests and to see the project come to fruition.
It could be recalled that the then PPP/C Administration had commenced the process of constructing a specialty hospital of its own at Turkeyen, East Coast Demerara. To fund it, the then Government had secured a US$18 million Line of Credit (LOC) from the Indian Export-Import (EXIM) bank.
However, the then Opposition (A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and Alliance For Change (AFC)) did everything in their power to ensure that the Specialty Hospital, along with other major development projects, was scrapped. APNU and AFC had contended that the formulation of the project was not transparent, but the Government in response had rejected this view.
Using their powers in the Parliament, in 2014, the AFC and APNU cut about $9.3 billion from the National Budget. The cuts targeted many sectors and certainly had a huge negative impact on ordinary Guyanese. Projects such as the Specialty Hospital; upgrading of Regional and District Hospitals, including Port Kaituma, Kwakwani, Linden, and Bartica; Eye Surgery Operating Room at Linden; Ambulances, ATVs and Boats, Surgical Equipment and Instruments; Amerindian Development Fund; Cheddi Jagan International Airport; Civil Aviation and Hinterland Airstrips were all affected.
While the budget cuts represented a major barrier in the PPP/C’s efforts to move ahead with its development plans, it is the people who suffered in the end. To date, there is still no Specialty Hospital, electricity costs remain high due to the Amaila Falls project not getting the necessary political support to get off the ground and the list goes on.
Like the other development projects, no one could have comprehended the rationale for voting against funds for the Specialty Hospital which would have gone towards land preparation, etc. Such a facility would have ensured that all Guyanese obtain health services that are only accessible overseas.
Similarly, the Amerindian Development Fund has, in the past, seen Amerindians receiving benefits through a number of areas, including equipment, rehabilitation of community huts, benabs, acquisition of solar power and computer systems, and the construction of dorms and hostels.
On numerous occasions before, this newspaper had stressed the importance of having a Specialty Hospital here considering the benefits it would bring to ordinary Guyanese and the country as a whole. The Specialty Hospital is an initiative aimed at improving the nation’s health in the most fundamental ways, and would allow health care of the highest quality to be afforded to persons of all walks of life.
In every part of the world, the right to proper, competent and modern medical care is regarded as a basic human right. Therefore, stakeholders ought to encourage, support, and even pressure the authorities to ensure that such facilities are available in the country at an affordable cost, especially to sections of the population who, because of their financial and economic standing, would otherwise be unable to go to a private facility or travel abroad for such treatment.
Our hope is that the authorities here would explore all the possible avenues for funding the project once again. In addition to the Government investing, the Private Sector has a lot to gain from partnering to ensure the project becomes a reality. All Guyanese desire top-class health care at a subsidised cost.
