International Health: Guyana and the Caribbean

Our Team: Our goal is to increase healthcare services and Infectious Disease Care in the Caribbean.

Georgetown, Guyana – Midway Specialty Care Center

MOTI RAMGOPAL MD FACP FIDSA CPI – RAJA TALATI MD – RUTH RAMOS MD – FRANK ANTHONY MD

(592) 502-1951
Lot 100 Carmichael Street,
Georgetown, Guyana

PUBLIC NOTICE: TESTING FOR COVID-19

The Ministry of Public Health and PAHO/WHO would like to inform the general public that the National Public Health Reference Laboratory (NPHRL) is solely authorized to test for the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19).

This facility also is the only one in Guyana with the capacity to perform the approved test. Any suspected case should be tested using available molecular test at the NPHRL. The NPHRL provides the specific procedures for collection of samples and can also request for testing to be done.

Suspected cases can fall within three categories. These categories specifically includes patient with acute respiratory illness , travel history to country reporting local transmission, persons who have been in contact with confirm cases among other clinic outlines prompting a test.s, Director of the local laboratory said Saturday.

For up to date information on COVID-19 and actions taken to combat the disease in Guyana please follow the link below or call the hotlines.

Moti Ramgopal, MD FIDSA FACP CPI,

Moti Ramgopal | MD, FACP, FIDSA is a Consultant Physician and Director of Associates in Infectious Diseases; Founder of Midway Immunology and Research Center, Founder and Chief Medical Officer for the not-for-profit Midway Specialty Care Center and Founder of Midway Primary Care, a not-for-profit primary care practice; Associate Professor of Medicine at Florida State University Medical School; and founder of Asvins.org.

Dr. Ramgopal received his medical degree from University of the West Indies Faculty of Medical Sciences and completed a Residency in Internal Medicine at Bon Secours Hospital in Michigan. He then completed a Fellowship in Infectious Diseases at Jackson Memorial and the University of Miami School of Medicine. He has been in practice for more than 20 years. Dr. Ramgopal is Board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and Infectious Disease.

Dr. Ramgopal serves as a Certified Principal Investigator for clinical research. His studies have been published in peer-reviewed journals such as The New England Journal of Medicine, The Lancet, The Journal of AIDS and IDSA’s The Journal of Infectious Diseases. His Midway Immunology and Research Center clinical team treated 300+ HIV and Hepatitis C patients for free at a savings to the community of more than $5,000,000 to date, giving patients access to cutting-edge treatments not available to the general public. Dr. Ramgopal was awarded the Top Physician honor by Treasure Coast Newspapers in 2014, received the Frist Humanitarian Award from HCA, and is a winner of FSU Guardian of the Mission Award.

Midway Specialty Care Center’s (MSCC) focus is to treat the whole patient, including a patient’s physical and mental health care needs. MSCC patients have access to in-house behavioral health care services, prescription medication management, nutrition services and wellness, acute and chronic care, as well as access to treatment and drugs through the clinic’s in-house pharmacy. Dr. Ramgopal is also recognized as a top Infectious Disease Doctor in the country by US News and World Reports. See his currently enrolling clinical trials: www.midwayresearch.org

Raja Talati, MD

Raja Talati, MD received his medical degree from Ross University School of Medicine and completed an Internship and Residency at Jackson Park Hospital in Chicago, IL in Family Medicine. Dr. Talati, MD serves as the Assistant Chief Medical Officer of Midway Specialty Care Center, Inc. in Florida. He is involved with the development of the telemedicine program so that patients with limited access to specialty care would be better served. He sees patients at Midway Primary Care Center in Fort Pierce as well as the Midway Primary Care, LLC in Okeechobee.

For his country he currently holds the position of Chief of Aerospace Medicine for the 927th AMDS at MacDill Air Force Base. He has about 400 hours of flight time in the C-17 an KC-135.

Since completing medical school, he earned his Masters In Health Information Systems and is pursuing his MBA with a specialization in Healthcare Analytics.

When not working; he enjoys outdoor activities and traveling with his family.

Ruth Ramos, MD

Ruth Ramos, MD is Cuban by birth and graduated from the University of Guyana in 2000. In 2003, Dr. Ramos moved from the Internal Medicine Department at Georgetown Public Hospital to the Genitourinary Medicine Clinic and then again to the National Care and Treatment Center (NCTC).

Through the years she has worked closely and developed a relationship with the Internal Medicine and ID Department, the TB clinic, OB/GYN and the Pediatric Department at GPHC. At a national level she has been part of various working groups for the development and review of guidelines and other relevant documents for the National Aids Program and Ministry of Health. Dr. Ramos is actively involved in the training and mentorship of medical students, interns medical officers and residents. From 2010 to 2018, Dr. Ramos was the director of the NCTC, the largest treatment site in Guyana. At this time Dr. Ramos continues to serve as a physician offering care for HIV and other STI’S on adults and pediatric populations, management of comorbidities, cervical cancer screening and cryotherapy.

Strategy: Develop a consultation team to implement services to underserved areas.

Total population (2016)	773,000
Gross national income per capita (PPP international $, 2013)	6,550
Life expectancy at birth m/f (years, 2016)	64/69
Probability of dying under five (per 1 000 live births, 2017)	31
Probability of dying between 15 and 60 years m/f (per 1 000 population, 2016)	313/210
Total expenditure on health per capita (Intl $, 2014)	379
Total expenditure on health as % of GDP (2014)	5.2

According to the World Health Organization, the country is in epidemiological transition. The non-communicable diseases are major causes of morbidity and mortality. In 2012, based on the Pan America Health Organization (PAHO) Mortality Data, non-communicable diseases accounted for the first five leading causes of death. Violence and injuries and intentional self-harm also contribute significantly to the mortality rate. There is still a significant burden of communicable diseases. Human Immunodeficiency Virus, influenza and pneumonia were the sixth and ninth leading causes of death respectively in 2012. Data from the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) show a reduction in the incidence of malaria and filaria in 2015; however, in 2015 the incidence of HIV was higher than in 2014 and tuberculosis incidence increased from 73/100.000 in 2014 to 75/100,000 in 2015. There is a very successful immunization programme and trained health personnel attend nearly all births. A progress report on the MDGs in 2011 indicated that the following targets had been met: halving the proportion of people suffering from hunger; education, gender equality; reducing the under 5 mortality rate by two-thirds; combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; environmental stability and water and sanitation.

See latest data: https://www.paho.org/salud-en-las-americas-2017/?p=2635

HIV Statistics: https://pancap.org/pancap-data/guyana/

Caricom Data from The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA, the new single regional public health agency for the Caribbean.

The Agency rationalizes public health arrangements in the Region by combining the functions of five Caribbean Regional Health Institutes (RHIs) into a single agency. CARICOM consists of: Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago.

See Latest country-by-country HIV breakdown: https://pancap.org/data-reports/country-data/

HIV Health data:

A new Caribbean Regional Strategic Framework on HIV and AIDS 2014-2018 (CRSF III) was developed. The Strategic Framework was prepared following wide-ranging consultation and extensive document review. CRSF III supports a regional health vision that includes the AIDS response, and which allows partner countries to capitalize on the investments already made, including cross-cutting and interdependent areas. It includes a set of top-line priorities and strategic actions that are tied to measurable outcomes. CRSF III also encapsulates strategies to address the challenges, needs and priorities identified by countries.

The programme includes the roll out of a Justice for All Roadmap which is aligned to the following four key elements: i) Increasing access to treatment including affordable medicines; ii) Reducing gender inequality including violence against women, girls and children; iii) Promoting sexual and reproductive health and rights, in the context of self-worth; and iv) Achieving legislative reforms for modifying and repealing discriminatory laws that infringe human rights.

Testimonials

"The doctor spent an enormous amount of time going over his records and truly explaining to us what was happening, unlike any other doctor."

Matt M.

"Thank you Dr Ramgopal and staff for providing healing hands. It is rare that you find such kind and dedicated people. I'm forever grateful."

Steven C.

"You saved MY LIFE. Period. Thank you for taking good care of us. To your patients, you are a hero."

David H.

"I admire your work and committment to being a healer, and am forever grateful. You have aligned yourself as a top professional in the area."

Jon M.