The ‘Lady Janet’, a dental boat was on Monday recommissioned by Health Minister, Dr. Frank Anthony, M.P, after being out of service for six years. The boat is expected to provide service for more than 2,000 residents in the Upper and Lower Pomeroon areas.
Some $2.8 million was expended by the ministry to refurbish the dental boat.
Senior Dental Surgeon for Region Two, Sabrieba Harrychan said she intends to focus more on providing dental care to school children. She is confident that the region will have better services, especially in the area of dentistry.
“We’re happy for the input of what they have started. I can tell you what they have started here under my supervision being the Senior Dental Surgeon in this Region it will not go in vain, but there will be prosperity and upward movement in the field where dentistry is concerned,” she said.
The fully equipped boat will be providing services such as oral examination, cleaning, filling, oral health education and extraction.
Harrychan said the boat will be operating out of the region on Mondays and Tuesdays.
Meanwhile, Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony, M.P, said “It’s first going to function as a dental boat because that’s what it was built to do. We think we can add additional services such as MCH [Maternal and Child Health] services, maybe general medical clinics.”
The health minister also noted that this additional service will boost dental care in the region as it will reach persons living in far flung areas.
Also present at the simple ribbon-cutting ceremony at Charity Waterfront were Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Nigel Dharamlall M.P, and other Senior Officers from the Ministry of Health and the Regional Democratic Council of Region Two.