Georgetown: The Davis Memorial Hospital (DMH) on Sunday commissioned a dental clinic at its Durban Backlands, Georgetown location, with the aim of broadening the service it provides to the public.
The new clinic was commissioned by President Donald Ramotar. It will be managed by two dentists. The facility has three rooms, two of which were specifically designed for treatment and the other for hygiene services.
Additionally, the hospital was the recipient of approximately 200 dental kits from two overseas universities.
Delivering the feature address, President Donald Ramotar recalled memories he had of the medical institution, particularly when it was first opened.
On behalf of his Government, he thanked the staff and management of DMH for the excellent service they provide to the Guyanese people and for now introducing a new service at the facility.
President Donald Ramotar addressing the gathering at the celebrations on Sunday
President Donald Ramotar addressing the gathering at the celebrations on Sunday
“We will continue to work very closely with you, so we can continue to enhance the quality of health services for all the people in our country,” President assured.
The Head of State pointed out that while health was seen as important, dental health has not been given the due recognition it deserves.
“In my view, it has possibilities of preventing many of the other sickness that people developed later on and from that point of view, I would love to see us doing more to lift the consciousness of people on the importance of health,” he stated.
President Ramotar went on to say that his Administration has been in sync with the development of people since the bulk of its annual budget goes to the social sector, so that they can touch the lives of as many people as possible. He added that the clinic is a wise investment as Government believes that the most important factor for development of any country is the quality of its people.
“There is no better way in enhancing the quality of people than by investing in education, health, housing and water… and that is where we are going,” the President explained.
Exceptional service
Meanwhile, DMH Chief Executive Officer Beverly Braithwaite-Chan said that with the addition of the dental clinic, patients of the hospital can look forward to “exceptional service from our highly-trained dental staff”.
Following the ceremony, President Ramotar along with hospital officials and the Guyana Conference of Seventh-day Adventist Church members were given a tour of the facility.
The commissioning of the dental facility comes as the institution celebrates 60 years of offering health services to Guyanese. As part of the celebration, DMH has planned several activities throughout the month of November.
These include dental outreaches in schools and the special communities to help children become more dental hygiene conscious.
Adults will also benefit from free blood pressure and sugar testing.
In addition, the Dr Pogue Memorial Charity Fund was launched by the children of the founder of DMH. The charity will be using its funds to support the hospital community outreach work and the less fortunate members of the local Seventh-day Adventist community as well as other communities.
To start the charity off, the family of the late Dr Pogue donated $1 million. Pamela, one of Dr Pogue’s daughters, said that her father would have been very excited to see all the arrangements to celebrate his work.
“His dream was to have a place where healing and God can walk hand in hand and he was so proud to be a part of Davis Memorial Hospital. He would have been so humbled and honoured by this celebration and by the page he takes in you history books,” she noted.
Pamela added that Guyana will always be a cherished place in the memories of their family.
Donations were also given throughout the day by President Ramotar and other persons who gathered for DMH anniversary, as they celebrate with the Guyana Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, 60 years of medical missionary work in Guyana.
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