Health

While chikungunya and zika, which swept the region in 2014 and 2016 are not expected back anytime soon, the Caribbean Public Health Agency  (CARPHA) is warning, “gear-up for the possibility of a major outbreak of dengue fever in 2018.” The agency said that is because as before, the pre-conditions of abundant mosquito vector levels still exist, and increased levels of ...

Approximately seventy-four residents from Regions Three, Four, Five and Ten have been trained to be Patient Care Assistants (PCAs). Addressing the newly trained PCAs at a graduation ceremony this morning, at the Georgetown Club, Minister of Public Health, Volda Lawrence urged them to be the catalyst that will transform their communities by proving the best care to patients. “You should ...

Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman on Tuesday directed the Guyana Gold Board (GGB) to stop burning gold at its Brickdam-based laboratory, after more than 60 workers of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) recorded high levels of the potentially deadly chemical in their bloodstream. Trotman’s office said he “has directed that the burning of raw gold at the ...

Under increasing pressure from the Board of Directors and staff of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), the Ministry of Natural Resources has announced that the Guyana Gold Board’s (GGB) mercury polluting laboratory would be moved from the Brickdam location that both agencies share. “Noting the Minister’s previous statements and the GGB’s and GGMC shared conclusion that it was ...

The Board of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) has recommended temporary closure of that entity until the environment is scrubbed of all mercury residue and the Guyana Gold Board (GGB) removes the laboratory that emits mercury while burning gold being bought from miners, a top GGMC official said. Chairman of the GGMC’s Board of Directors, Stanley Ming said ...

The Ministry of Social Protection’s Occupational Safety and Health Department on Thursday rubbished claims by the trade union representing Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) workers that their concerns about mercury poisoning have been ignored. Chairman of the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (NACOSH), Earl Morris stressed that “that’s not true” and persons could easily make erroneous conclusions ...

Guyana is moving to update its regulations and law governing occupational safety and health to govern the oil and gas sector  ahead of the start of commercial production in 2020, a consultant said Wednesday. “We are looking at regulations shortly for the oil and gas sector  so it’s not a case that we are not doing anything,” Occupational Safety and ...

Workers of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) are threatening protest action if other relevant government agencies remain silent on mercury poisoning by emissions from the Guyana Gold Board. President of the Guyana Civil Servants and General Workers Union (GCS&GWU), Gregory Gaspar said his newly-formed trade union is demanding that the GGB either shuts down the laboratory or invests ...

The Pan-Caribbean Partnership against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP), the mechanism that provides a structured and unified approach to the Caribbean’s response to the HIV epidemic, will host the Joint Regional Dialogue with Faith Leaders, Parliamentarians, Civil Society Leaders, National AIDS Programme Managers and Youth Leaders. Approximately 60 delegates representing Parliamentarians, Faith Leaders, Youth Leaders, Key Populations, People Living with HIV ...

The Guyana Gold Board (GGB) will have to mull whether to remove its laboratory in the wake of above normal mercury levels in 60 of the more than 130 workers of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) that have been tested so far, Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman said. Trotman announced in the presence of the Board of ...