No stopping doctors from private work but better service needed in public healthcare – Pres. Ali

During a frank engagement with doctors from across the 10 Administrative Regions on Friday, President Dr. Irfaan Ali said he does not intend to stop doctors from working simultaneously in the private and public sectors but made sincere calls for improvement in public healthcare services.

He wants these healthcare professionals, many from the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), to guarantee that all patients seeking services in the public sector will access a minimum standard of service and that all backlogs of cases are addressed in the shortest possible time.

“Which are the areas we have a specific backlog in? Which areas do you require us to bring in specialised people to clear the backlog?

“I want us to identify the areas of backlog and we are going to invest in clearing those backlogs, particularly in matters that concern women and children,” President Ali said as he engaged scores of doctors at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, at Liliendaal, Georgetown.

In his brief remarks before a closed-door discussion with the doctors, he elucidated the government’s plans for the development of the healthcare sector.

That includes guaranteeing that all persons in Guyana have access to sound primary healthcare services alongside more specialised services that can eventually be a huge income-earner for Guyana.

The President said the health workers are an integral part of the development of the health sector since they are the ones who will be providing the care and they are the ones tasked with utilising the new facilities, hospitals and centres, being built.

“I believe we are making serious investments in the healthcare system and in making these investments, the population and the government expect that in a short time span, we must be able to deliver efficient, quality and world class healthcare to the citizens of Guyana in the first instance,” Dr. Ali said.

But even as he touted the importance of the doctors to the public health sector, he assured them that he could not bar them from offering their services in the private sector too. He acknowledged that doctors may want to earn extra and gain valuable experience.

“I believe we can work towards a healthy balance,” he said.

This is also an important consideration since labour shortages are affecting the healthcare sector. Dr. Ali assured the doctors that the government is working on both short term and medium term solutions to fill staffing gaps, including massive training of new personnel.