The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) yesterday honoured Harry and Pamela Harakh for their leadership through the Caribbean North Charity Foundation in helping establish Guyana’s first dedicated Burn Care Unit.
The recognition ceremony celebrated the Foundation’s role in the development of the specialized facility, which officially opened in November 2002 and marked a significant development in Guyana’s public healthcare system. At the time, the Foundation was largely made up of Guyanese who had migrated to Canada during the 1990s and were committed to giving back to their homeland through humanitarian and healthcare initiatives.
A release from the GPHC said that the Foundation’s involvement began in the late 1990s when Harry and Pamela Harakh, together with volunteer medical professionals from Canada, organized humanitarian medical missions to Guyana. During these missions, which provided treatment for cleft lip and palate deformities as well as patients suffering from severe burn injuries, the team pinpointed the urgent need for a dedicated burns treatment facility, as burn patients were being treated in open wards.
Working alongside the Ministry of Health, the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation and Canadian medical professionals, the Foundation gathered resources, medical equipment and technical expertise to support the establishment of the Burn Care Unit at GPHC.
The Burn Care Unit officially opened on November 11, 2002, providing Guyana with its first specialized facility for the treatment and rehabilitation of burn patients.
The release noted that a dedicated Burn Care Unit is critical because burn injuries often require specialized treatment due to the risk of infection, extensive wound management needs, fluid loss, pain control, reconstructive procedures and long-term rehabilitation. Unlike general surgical patients, individuals with severe burns require a controlled environment and a multidisciplinary team of healthcare professionals trained specifically in burn management to improve survival and reduce long-term complications.
GPHC Chief Executive Officer Robbie Rambarran reflected on his own connection to the project, recalling that he joined the hospital as a warehouse clerk in 2002 and was responsible for receiving many of the construction materials used in developing the unit.
He noted that the area where the Burns Care Unit now stands had previously served as the hospital’s pharmacy warehouse before being converted into the specialized facility.
Highlighting the impact of the unit, Rambarran said, “Without this unit, without the capacity that we have built over those years, we would have been unable to save countless lives and prevent long-term disfigurement and disability.”
Rambarran said the six-bed Burn Care Unit continues to play a vital role in patient care, recording 76 admissions in 2024, 116 in 2025 and 68 patients so far this year.
Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony, reflected on the conditions at Georgetown Hospital during the 1990s, when the absence of a specialized burns facility contributed to poor outcomes for patients with severe burn injuries.
He said that burn patients were previously treated in general wards, where maintaining infection control and providing the specialized care required for severe burns posed significant challenges.
“With a specialized unit, we were able to bring that down significantly. And that was what made a difference to our patients,” he said, referring to the reduction in burn-related mortality following the establishment of the unit.
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