The $44.4 million Paramakatoi Smart Hospital in Region Eight, which got off to a late start, is expected to be completed by mid-year. The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) will undertake the construction, Minister of Health Dr Frank Anthony said on Tuesday.
Guyana has benefitted from the ‘Smart Healthcare Facilities in the Caribbean’ project, with five hospitals across the country being retrofitted to offer improved services to citizens.
“They have now started working and we expect by the mid of this year that facility would be ready,” the minister said.
The construction phase of the project is being managed by the Pan American Health Organisation/ World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO).
The ministry has already retrofitted the Diamond Hospital, Lethem, Leonora and Mabaruma hospitals. Dr. Anthony said the climate resilient facilities “will be much smarter and more user friendly.”
“We’re using the concept smart because we want to make these facilities climate resilient, meaning that they shouldn’t be flooded. We also want to utilise things like solar power so that we can constantly have renewable energy…
We also want to collect rain water and utilise it in the facility. This is another way we can make use of the resources that are around us,” Dr. Anthony said.
The Smart Hospital initiative is funded by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development, at a cost of $835 million (US$4.175 million).