Guyana, Mount Sinai Health System and Hess announce five-year extension of National Healthcare Initiative

Last Updated on Tuesday, 25 March 2025, 22:29 by Writer

President Irfaan Ali on Tuesday announced a five-year extension of the National Healthcare Initiative to transform Guyana’s public health system with world-class healthcare services accessible to every Guyanese citizen.

This next phase of the initiative, launched in 2022 by the Government of Guyana in collaboration with the Mount Sinai Health System and Hess Corporation, will include establishment of a national cancer centre, continued modernisation of national health facilities including the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, and the implementation of one of the world’s most advanced digital health systems.

The continued collaboration will build on significant progress made in the first phase of the national healthcare initiative, where Mount Sinai supported the Guyana Ministry of Health in rolling out the Government’s health system innovations, including over 35,000 child health screenings, the Ministry’s training programmes that will graduate nearly 900 nursing assistants in 2025, and a new state-of-the-art pathology lab.

The initiative will continue to be funded jointly by Hess Corporation and the Government of Guyana and led by the Arnhold Institute for Global Health, the arm of Mount Sinai dedicated to advancing the institution’s mission of delivering innovative, high-quality healthcare around the globe, and Mount Sinai International, the international ventures arm of the Mount Sinai Health System.

The President was joined today by Dr Rachel Vreeman, Chair of Mount Sinai’s Department of Global Health and Health System Design and Director of the Arnhold Institute for Global Health at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and John Hess, CEO of Hess Corporation, for a signing ceremony to establish the five-year extension of the national healthcare initiative.

“The journey to world-class healthcare is not walked alone – it is built through strategic partnerships, bold investments, and a shared vision for excellence. Today, we take another decisive step toward transforming our healthcare system. By uniting the policy, expertise and resources of Hess Corporation, Mount Sinai, and the Government, along with our local healthcare professionals, we are shaping a future where every citizen has access to cutting-edge, compassionate, and high-quality care. Together, we are not just improving healthcare – we are redefining it.” President Ali said.

CEO John Hess said: “We are proud to support the vision of the Government and the work of Mount Sinai to provide world class healthcare to every Guyanese citizen. Access to affordable and high-quality healthcare is central to the country’s future and its commitment to building shared prosperity for the people of Guyana.”

“At Mount Sinai, we believe global health is local health, and with the Government of Guyana and the Hess Corporation, we’re building a public health system that ensures all citizens of Guyana – especially the most vulnerable – can live healthier, more productive lives,” said Dr Brendan Carr, Chief Executive Officer, and Professor and Kenneth L. Davis, MD, Distinguished Chair of the Mount Sinai Health System. “This unique public-private partnership serves as a global model, and we are honoured to be part of this transformational effort.”

“We are incredibly proud to work in partnership with the Government of Guyana to improve access to high-quality healthcare for all Guyanese,” said Dr Vreeman. “Now, through 2030, we will continue to support and accelerate Guyana’s progress to achieving a healthier country and a transformed health system, setting a new regional and global standard for modern health system development.”

Areas of Focus to Achieve a Healthier Guyana by 2030

The next phase of the national initiative will be organised around the Government’s vision for six key pillars: 

World Class Cancer Care: Establish a first-in-class national cancer centre to screen and treat breast, cervical, prostate and other common cancers that cause the most deaths in Guyana. The first phase of cancer services will expand much-needed access to cancer screening, diagnostic and treatment options; the second phase will offer advanced tertiary oncology services to the entire community in Guyana.

Women’s and Children’s Hospital: Ensure Guyana’s new National Women’s and Children’s Hospital meets international quality standards, is well-managed, and ready to provide high-quality care for all of Guyana’s women and children.

Community-Centred Care: Complete the transformation of health systems across Guyana’s regions to ensure everyone in Guyana, especially youth and vulnerable people, can receive health screenings, primary care treatment, and supportive services – creating a supportive health ecosystem across the country.

Quality Improvement: Implement a national programme to improve the quality, safety, and delivery of health services – from the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), the country’s largest hospital, to regional hospitals to every health centre and post. These initiatives will provide a strong foundation for the growth of a high-quality, modern health system that provides unparalleled care for all.

Digital Health: Support the implementation of Guyana’s first national electronic health records system and complete the foundations for one of the most advanced digital health systems in the region and the world by 2030.

Capacity Building: Ensure critical health workforce needs are met by continuing capacity building in health workforce development, resource planning, management, and financing.

Key Accomplishments in First Phase of Healthcare Initiative

Since this national healthcare initiative’s launch in July 2022, significant progress is being made in improving health outcomes. Key accomplishments include:

Over 35,000 Guyanese children have had comprehensive health screenings completed by the Ministry of Health, with around a quarter referred on for needed services to address vision, hearing, dental, and developmental problems and more.

Nearly 900 nursing assistants will graduate from the Ministry of Health’s training programmes in 2025 and join the health workforce, beginning to close the nursing shortage.

New guidelines and clinical protocols to grow primary care services for diseases like diabetes are launching nationally, across all of Guyana’s regions.

New digital protection laws are in place to support the rollout of new digital health systems, and a new Guyana digital health training institute will enroll its first class of digital health professionals early next year.

A state-of-the-art pathology lab has reduced the time it takes for patients to be diagnosed and receive life-saving treatments.

Quality improvements at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation have improved patient safety and are providing a new model for a national quality improvement programme.

Hess Corporation (NYSE: HES) is a leading global independent energy company engaged in the exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas. The company is recognized as an industry leader in environmental, social and governance performance and disclosure. More information on Hess Corporation is available at www.hess.com.

Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with 48,000 employees working across eight hospitals, more than 400 outpatient practices, more than 600 research and clinical labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time—discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it.

Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients’ medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 9,000 primary and specialty care physicians and 11 free-standing joint-venture centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida. Hospitals within the System are consistently ranked by Newsweek’s® “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals, Best in State Hospitals, World Best Hospitals and Best Specialty Hospitals” and by U.S. News & World Report’s® “Best Hospitals” and “Best Children’s Hospitals.” The Mount Sinai Hospital is on the U.S. News & World Report® “Best Hospitals” Honor Roll for 2024-2025. For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org.