Pres. Ali talks up “aggressive plan” to improve healthcare

President Irfaan Ali at the fundraiser dinner (Photo: Office of the President/June 04, 2022)

The President said the target areas will be persons with disabilities, mental illnesses, women and children and speciality care.

He noted that Guyana has “a serious mental health issue” that must be addressed and that it must be closely linked to primary healthcare.

For women and children, President Ali said that a state-of-the-art maternal and children’s hospital will be built with a capacity of 250 beds.

The President said that while the government will support the private sector in providing and developing speciality care, they will also need to have some “balancing” as it relates to cost.

Meanwhile, President Ali made it clear that the primary healthcare system must be revamped.

President Irfaan Ali at the fundraiser dinner (Photo: Office of the President/June 04, 2022)

“We have to ensure that we get the new generation of people to understand what they have to change, [what] we did wrong. To do this, it requires the education system to get involved. It requires the curriculum in schools to change to reflect the new forms of thinking and the new approach— different approaches that are needed in confronting this challenge,” President Ali said.

He also noted that although the government will do all that it can to advance the country’s healthcare systems, it has to be done through a shared and joint approach where every stakeholder assumes responsibility.

President Irfaan Ali at the fundraiser dinner (Photo: Office of the President/June 04, 2022)

“We have to take shared responsibility, shared risk, and we have to be able to create a multi-stakeholder approach to fixing this problem. The private sector, the doctors, those who are affected, the families of those who are affected and young people.” (Modified Office of the President press release)