C.E.O.'s CORNER

We are really preparing for the famous Cricket World Cup country wide. Mercy had its second disaster drill working with the staff from the Ogle Airport. We had seven “patients”, two hysterical “family members” but thankfully no deaths. Of course the drill was called right in the middle of our Board of Directors meeting so that added an additional dimension. We learned some very valuable lessons on how to improve our plan.

I will be attending a Sisters of Mercy meeting in Peru this month. The Sisters of Mercy from the 8 Caribbean, Central and South American countries are in the process of forming a single Region called CCASA (Caribbean, Central America and South America). This Region will in turn be an integral part of the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas. These are exciting times and will enhance our ability to carry on God’s work. I feel proud to be a part of it.

There are new Sisters coming to work in Guyana. They are Sisters of the Incarnate Word and they will be setting up a convent in Charity in the Pomeroon. The Pomeroon is a region in the Interior which consists of many small villages with a large Amerindian population.

Sr. Sheila Walsh, RSM, Chief Executive Officer

It is our hope the Mercy Hospital can work with the sisters and people there to set up a program for volunteer doctors to come and do cataract and pterygium surgery there periodically. Poor vision and blindness is a serious problem especially in the Interior where people live and work many hours in the bright sun. Pterygium is a condition where a fine piece of tissue grows over the eyeball as nature’s way of protecting the eye from the sun. It is a condition that is easy to correct. All we need are the doctors, instruments, 2 ophthalmic microscopes, a phaco machine, some volunteer nurses, a small autoclave, a hospital in which to operate and a little money. Sounds easy enough to me. I believe if you don’t dream it can never happen.

We are doing “clean up, fix up, paint up” around our hospital and grounds in preparation for the Cricket World Cup. We want to shine more than usual. I have instructed the termites, wood ants and rats to go on vacation during the event. Hopefully the pot holes on the street in front of the hospital will be filled in before the big event.

Our Mobile Clinic continues to care for Guyanese with low or no income. These are desperate times for people, especially those with chronic illnesses such as Diabetes and Hypertension and children with asthma.. Our economy has deteriorated and the cost of living continues to climb so often these folks don’t know where their next meal is coming from or if it is coming at all. Before the Clinic, as soon as people started to feel better they stopped taking their medicine if they could afford it in the first place. At the Mobile Clinic the medication is free as are most of the tests and of course the doctor visit. I firmly believe that many of these patients living a decent quality of life today would not have lived to see this day were it not for the Mobile Clinic and its dedicated staff. It is truly the work of God and a ministry loved by our foundress Catherine McAuley. It is an honor to be part of it.

Each day I am grateful for the challenges, pleased with the successes and am wiser from the failures.

Sr. Sheila Walsh, RSM,

Chief Executive Officer
02-Feb-2007


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