After attending the United Nations General Assembly Meeting in New York, Guyana’s President Donald Ramotar and his wife, Deolatchmee Ramotar, stopped in Los Angeles to attend a special dinner hosted by Direct Relief partner organization, Guyana Medical Relief (GMR).

During the dinner, held Sunday at the Luxe City Center Hotel, President Ramotar  recognized Direct Relief’s long-term medical assistance efforts and partnership with GMR.

He thanked Direct Relief for three decades of support, and credited its provision of more than $10 million of medical products to Guyanese healthcare facilities with significantly strengthening the capacity of the country’s health care system.

President Ramotar and the First Lady also spoke about the numerous health care obstacles that make it difficult for many of Guyana’s residents to access quality medical services.

These include widespread poverty, inequity, and disparities among ethnic and geographic groups; a high burden of infectious diseases, non-communicable diseases, and injuries; a lack of roads and bridges affecting patient transport; and medical professional brain drain.

Despite these challenges, the President said that the slow but steady economic growth in Guyana over the past few years is gradually improving the efficiency and quality of public hospital services throughout the country.

Direct Relief’s most recent medical donation to Guyana was a 38-pallet shipment which was distributed by GMR to four district hospitals in late July. The shipment contained medications adequate to address both acute and chronic conditions for a six month period.