The lack of finances does not mean an automatic exemption from having to pay, at times, for health care provided outside of the public health sector.Sources of financing come as a major relief to some people who are financially challenged. Such avenues to cater to health care could be through the likes of insurance companies, be it the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) or privately operated entities.Speaking recently of the several layers of financial options available to patients, was Medical Director and Resident Cardiologist of the Caribbean Heart Institute (CHI), Dr. Mahendra Carpen.? Dr. Carpen offers his expert cardiac services at the privately operated CHI which is situated in the compound of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) and represents a public/private partnership.Although accessing the cardiac services at CHI comes at a cost to patients, he noted that financial assistance can be gained at the various insurance avenues for this purpose. But according to Dr. Carpen, while there is a fair amount of people who have access to private insurance, NIS,Dan Hampton Bears Jersey, or both, “the majority of patients we see tend to want to pay out of their pockets.”“This is kind of revealing…patients who have insurance don’t really like to use that option. They would rather pay out of their pockets and I am sure the insurance companies like that. But it is a little strange to know that patients have coverage but they don’t take advantage of it,” said Dr. Carpen.Finance Minister, Winston JordanThis state of affairs, he speculated, might very well be as a result of a lack of awareness of the available benefits.The Cardiologist said,Authentic NFL Jerseys, though, that he has dealt with a number of patients who have successfully benefited from the support of insurance companies. In fact,Kieran Gibbs Arsenal Jersey UK, the patient who underwent an inaugural implantable loop procedure at CHI last week, was the beneficiary of support from NIS, a process that Dr. Carpen said went quite smoothly.But then there are some patients that don’t even have access to insurance. These patients could however be eligible for financial support from the Ministry of Health. The Cardiologist explained that “what we do in those instances we actually write on behalf of the patients to the Ministry of Health through the office of the Medical Director, and that goes to the relevant department of the Ministry.”Once in receipt of that correspondent the request is assessed and a decision is made on whether or not patients are eligible for assistance and the amount that would be forthcoming. And this level of support has been ongoing since the introduction of CHI in 2006 save and except for a period when the Ministry’s fund intended to support needy patients had reportedly dried up.Despite a change in Government earlier this year the support has been sustained, according to Dr. Carpen. “We have been having a fairly good relationship with the Ministry of Public Health as far as patient funding is concerned.”As part of the continued collaboration with CHI and the Ministry,Cheap NFL Jerseys, Dr. Carpen disclosed that “we are in the process of finalizing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to guide operations.”This publication understands that one of the key points in the pending MOU is that “we have to be able to treat the patients in the GPHC, in the public sector,Josh Manson, who have an emergency need for the services we provide.”“A lot of what we do are life saving and life changing procedures,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, and are completely unacceptable that patients are denied timely care because of their social or financial situation,” said Dr. Carpen.He said that the cost for the services offered is of importance since the cost recovery mechanism is important.Cost recovery, he noted, is essential to the extent that it is necessary to keep CHI operational and for it to grow and expand at an appropriate pace.

Jet boat accident …– Man still missingSeventeen-year-old Romona Persaud, the US-based Guyanese who was involved in the boat accident in the Mazaruni River, has nowInjured: Ray Maniramregained consciousness. She is currently in the Intensive Care Unit of the Georgetown Hospital.The mishap occurred in the vicinity of Marshall Falls,Cheap NFL jerseys China, Mazaruni River, when the speedboat came into contact with a rope which was attached to a pontoon. The impact forced the boat into the side of the pontoon and passengers were thrown out of the boat which began to sink.Persaud’s relatives told Kaieteur News yesterday that the teenager is “almost back to her usual self”. However, they say the young girl has no recollection of the incident.“She can speak properly and even laugh with us,” one relative stated. This newspaper was told that her adopted parents flew into Guyana yesterday morning after receiving reports about the mishap.The young girl began opening her eyes around lunch time yesterday and began speaking with her mother.Her father,NFL Jerseys Discount, Gregory Buntz, said that he was extremely pleased and relieved to know that his daughter was recovering at a fast rate.“She is conscious, talking and we are just happy,” Buntz told this publication.Kaieteur News understands that this was the first visit by Persaud to Guyana after spending some 14 years abroad.Meanwhile, relatives of the missing man, Ray Maniram of Canal Number One, West Bank Demerara, yesterday refused to speak to Kaieteur News.“We are not speaking to anyone….and we can’t give out any information,” said one relative.Kaieteur News was told by police sources that the man’s body had not been located, this was up to press time.Maniram along with 23 others, including relatives and friends, were heading to Marshall Falls for a tour.According to Leanna Carroll, 17, one of the survivors, the incident occurred between noon and 13:00hrs on Monday. She recounted that the boat left Bartica at 08:00hrs and several stops were made along the way.Carroll, who is also an overseas-based Guyanese, had returned home for a vacation and her family decided to have a fun-filled weekend in Bartica.She explained that the incident happened after the “jet boat” that was heading to Marshall Falls along the rapids came into contact with a rope leading to a pontoon.This was echoed by David Itwaru, 18,Wholesale Jerseys For Sale, another passenger. He said that the speedboat came into contact with “an iron rope which was attached to a pontoon”, upon impact the boat was pushed into the side of the pontoon and passengers were thrown out of the boat.He said that a Brazilian tour boat was traversing the waterway and upon seeing their distress,Wholesale NFL Jerseys Supply, travelled to the nearest shore, offloaded its passengers and returned.Itwaru said that he was the first to climb onto the boat and started pulling his family and friends from the water.While most of the passengers remained in Bartica, five were sent to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) for medical attention.Injured and treated at the Georgetown Public Hospital were Leanna Carroll, 17; Gabriella Persaud, 10, Dr. Kayitra Persaud, who is a doctor at the West Demerara Regional Hospital; David Itwaru, 18, Anil Parbhutiar; Roma Persaud, 49; and Danny Persaud, 57.The hospital confirmed that all of the injured persons, except Romona Persaud, have been released from the institution.Meanwhile Kaieteur News was told that the boat owner, Mr. Balkarran Bhagwandas,Cheap Jerseys USA, has been released from police custody.The police are still continuing investigations.