GEORGETOWN, Guyana - Guyana is constructing a US$161 million hospital in New Amsterdam that health and other officials say will provide world-class healthcare services to citizens in the East Berbice-Corentyne region.
President Irfaan Ali, speaking at the sod turning ceremony on Sunday, said that the hospital is not just a stand-alone facility but will operate on a hub-and-spoke mechanism, connecting health centers in the region through telemedicine.
“Whether in Canje Creek, whether in Baracara…Wherever you are, those hospitals will be connected to this hospital,” President Ali said, adding that the new facility will also be connected to the main referral hospital in city through telemedicine, and the main hospital will be linked to Mount Sinai and other major hospitals around the world.
“What we want to create is something call parity of service and this is what technology allows us to do,” Ali noted.
The four-story building will include a minimum of five operating theatres, one specifically for cardiac surgery, and advanced digital X-ray, and CT Scan machines. It will be the second public facility to house an MRI machine and will be equipped for transplants.
Two additional buildings will be constructed within the compound – one to facilitate classes and a modern psychiatric facility.
The project which being executed by VAMED Engineering is expected is expected to be completed within 36 months.
“I hope in the next four weeks, we start to see piles being driven here. There is very little excuse that can be given since the weather is great and we have built up enough capacity in terms of material in this country,” President Ali told the contractor.
Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony said the project is a manifestation of the government’s vision to establish a level five facility in Region Six, fully equipped to provide modern services.
He said while the facility is under construction, the government is investing millions to enhance services at the existing New Amsterdam Hospital.
Anthony said a new nursing school will be constructed in New Amsterdam and will replace the existing one which is only capable of training only 40 individuals annually.
The new Skeldon Hospital being constructed will complement the New Amsterdam Hospital. That project is expected to be completed by 2025.
