- more than 75,000 patients seen
THE East Bank Demerara Regional Hospital, popularly known as the Diamond Diagnostic and Treatment Centre, will today mark one year since it was officially opened by President Bharrat Jagdeo.

Since then, the Centre, located in the village of Diamond, on the East Bank Demerara has provided quality health care to 75,023 persons from as far as Parika, on the East Bank Essequibo. Patients were treated for various health conditions at the centre.

According to Minister within the Ministry of Health, Dr Bheri Ramsaran, three thousand two hundred and thirteen (3213) interventions were conducted, of which 668 were major surgeries, 2052 ultrasounds, 3050 endoscopies (looking inside the body for medical reasons using an instrument called an endoscope), ECG (Electrocardiogram) 134 and 19,067 lab tests were also done at the institution.

Minister Ramsaran said that the figures have shown that the facility is becoming more popular, and that the quality of service being offered is more acceptable.

“The facility has been a boon for the residents of the East Bank Demerara, the Georgetown area and even beyond,” he said.

The hospital is currently staffed by Cubans and Guyanese specialists. Initially, a team of Cuban nurses, doctors and technicians staffed the facility, but recently the Ministry of Health added several other health personnel, including two medical officers who recently graduated in Cuba.

“These are Cuban-trained Guyanese doctors who have returned to Guyana. They have been attached to facilities at Diamond, Leonora, Suddie and Mahaicony as interns where they will continue to improve their skills and continue their training under supervision until they are fully qualified to work independently,” Minister Ramsaran said.

The hospital has brought significant relief to persons on the East Bank corridor, thereby reducing the need for them to travel to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

The Ministry of Health is being proactive and is currently looking at ways of improving the services provided at all health centres countrywide.

“The Government’s manifesto clearly states that the administration will in a significant way, revamp the total health sector infrastructure and at the same time it mentioned where specific facilities would have been constructed, this is a clear indication of that commitment being fulfilled,” Minister Ramsaran.

The Centre, which offers a wide range of services such as laboratory, intensive care, x-ray and ultra-sound, also has the capacity to conduct surgery.

During President Bharrat Jagdeo’s visit to Cuba in February 2006, it was agreed that the Guyana Government will purchase US$1.2M worth of equipment to furnish four diagnostic and treatment centres that would be set up by the Cubans.

The centre was constructed by the Government of Guyana at a cost of $131M, while the staff quarters were constructed at a cost of $40M. Equipment for these centres were purchased from Cuba at a cost of US$1.2M.