Guyana is training more nurses, providing advanced training to doctors, buying higher quality equipment and encouraging surgeons from across the Caribbean to come here to share their expertise as part of a wider plan to gear up the country to become a medical “hub” for the rest of the region, according to Health Minister Dr ...

Finance Minister Dennis Cornwall and Chevanne Britton are Grenada’s participants at the World Bank/International Monetary Fund (IMF) fall meetings

View the full post Cornwall and Britton attending World Bank/IMF meetings on NOW Grenada.

The Guyana Cancer Society has partnered with GTT, Ministry of Health, the US Embassy and several cancer support organizations in holding a specialist medical outreach at the Bartica Regional Hospital in Cuyuni – Mazaruni (Region Seven).  A contingent of 15 specialist doctors including  two gynaecologists, one pediatrician, one urologist, five dentists, four ophthalmologists, and two ...

Guyana’s public health care system is now delivering cancer biopsy results in less than two weeks rather than waiting several months, says Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony. After visiting the doctor and biopsy specimens from suspicious lumps are taken, he said up to last month it took a long time before patients received results, resulting ...

GTT is urging Guyanese to help that company raise GY$30 million to fight breast cancer and other cancers, amid staggering figures about that disease in this South American nation. GTT spokeswoman, Jasmin Harris says the money will be used raise awareness, screening and diagnosis. Key activities for the remainder of October/Pintokber are medical outreaches in ...

View the full post Octagonal Front-of-Package labelling still up for vote by Caricom on NOW Grenada.

View the full post Grenada National Council on Aging appeals for fulfilment of rights for older people on NOW Grenada.

View the full post Grenadian Dentist to be inducted into Pierre Fauchard Academy on NOW Grenada.

By Emmanuel Joseph

Health authorities say food manufacturing and packaging plant, Hill Milling Company Limited is expected to get the green light to reopen shortly.

The news from Acting Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Arthur Phillips came on Friday afternoon, just over three months after environmental health officials closed the Haggatt Hall, St Michael company and dumped more than $500 000 in food items because of a rat infestation.

Although he declined to estimate a timeframe for the resumption of operations, Dr Phillips said he was comfortable Hill Milling was on track to get back to business soon.

He told Barbados TODAY that the dumping, which was done in stages, is now complete and the plant has done most of what it was required to do.

An inspection by health officers will be done to verify that all the recommended actions were completed.

“There is training, which must have been conducted yesterday. That is essentially it at this point. We would have had meetings with them and it helped to clarify that we were on the same page and we have the same goals,” health official stated.

“We are comfortable that they are improving and that they are on track to be back in business soon. I don’t have a timeframe. Our end goal is to ensure they are operating in a way that is safe to them and to the public and to public health standards. So, we believe that there is not much left to be done, and they are committed to doing all that is required.”

Dr Phillips said there would have to be a final sanitising of the plant, which will be done by Hill Milling staff under the supervision of environmental health officers, “once we have signed off on everything else”.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company Richard Ashby had complained that while waiting for the health authorities to give him the all-clear to reopen, staff had been sent on leave; his local and overseas customers were without products, which include rice, sugar, corn curls, oats, peas, beans and snacks; and the major revenue-earning portion of his business, exports, was in jeopardy.

“I sell to 4 000 shopkeepers…supermarkets, gas stations, minimarts…you know, people out in the country who sell from their windows, their back doors. But that’s not my big stuff, my big stuff is exports. So you are not only affecting small shops in Barbados but you are affecting the big shops in Guyana, Jamaica, St Lucia, Miami, New York and St Kitts,” the business owner had previously told Barbados TODAY, noting that the affected aspects of the plant included milling, packaging and producing.  emmanueljoseph@barbados.bb

The post Health officials say Hill Milling close to reopening appeared first on Barbados Today.

Guyana will by next year have its first specialty hospital whose focus will be on eye care with the aim of tapping into the medical tourism market, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Optique Vision Care, Dhani Narine said Friday. He made the announcement at a 10th anniversary observance, and later told Demerara Waves Online ...