Some 2,000 Computed Tomography (CT) scans are currently being conducted monthly at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC). This is a drastic increase from the mere hundreds that were previously conducted.
This update was provided by Advisor to the Minister of Health, Dr Leslie Ramsammy, during his recent appearance on the televised programme, ‘The Guyana Dialogue.’
“Up to last year, we were doing a couple of hundred CT scans per month. We are now doing close to 2,000 CTs per month at the GPHC,” he said.
The increase comes after the government implemented a policy last November, which saw all CT scans at the facility being conducted at no cost to the patient and administered based on the urgency of the issue.
The monumental move by the government was met with praise, with multiple patients stating that the removal of the fee would greatly assist in lifting the financial burden of healthcare.
Before November 2022, the cost of a CT scan ranged from around $15,000 to over $50,000 in some instances.
The government’s intervention assisted in removing financial constraints as well as expedited the treatment and care of patients, as there was no delay for patients who face difficulty in covering the cost of their CT scans.
The Government of Guyana is currently working to modernise and transform the health sector.
A slew of new measures that are being implemented will see every person in Guyana receiving access to high-quality and affordable healthcare over the next few years.