Georgetown Hospital acquires high-tech equipment to treat enlarged prostate

Last Updated on Monday, 11 November 2024, 20:23 by Writer

GPHC Chief Executive Officer Robbie Rambarran

The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) is now the first healthcare institution in the southern Caribbean to have acquired advanced technology to conduct laser treatment of enlarged prostate, Chief Executive Officer Robbie Rambarran announced Sunday.

He said that type of procedure was being performed with a 100-watt Magneto high-powered laser that was acquired by the publicly-owned hospital. “This is the newest technology on the market, I was told, and the first of its kind in the southern Caribbean. It permits minimal invasive laser treatment of enlarged prostate,” he told the opening of the Caribbean Urological Association’s (CURA) 26th Annual International Conference.

Mr Rambarran also said such equipment in many cases would save discharge and minimal bleeding at the time of the surgery.

The GPHC CEO credited Urologist Rajendra Sukhraj with the several improvements in urology diagnosis, treatment and care at that hospital.

Mr Rambarran said the GPHC has been also offering approximately 600 prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood tests per month free of cost for prostate cancer. In terms of cancer testing, he said the recently commissioned GY$400 million histopathology lab has reduced the turnaround waiting time for diagnosing prostate and other cancers from 30 or 35 days to five or seven days.

Earlier this year, that hospital acquired a GY$25 million ultrasonic lithotripter that uses advanced ultrasonic energy to precisely and effectively pulverise kidney stones, placing patient comfort and safety at the forefront. He said during 2023, 100 percent of kidney stone patients were treated with that equipment instead of open surgery.