There were smiles on the faces of many of the 26 young patients on Christmas Day, when President Donald Ramotar accompanied by his daughter Lisa Ramotar, along with Chief Executive Officer Michael Khan and other officials visited the Paediatric Ward of the Georgetown Public Hospital.
The president and his daughter delivered gifts and kind words to the young children who are being treated for ailments ranging from burns and broken limbs, to cancer.
The head of state said he was happy to be able to visit the children who were ill and also expressed appreciation for those caregivers on duty at this time within the various children’s units.
“I’m happy to be coming here to extend Christmas greetings to those who are not in a position to enjoy themselves. I thought I would come to meet them, to meet the caregivers, the nurses, the doctors who are here at this point in time, who would have been away from their families and contributing their services. I’m happy to be here to share with the children, the nurses and doctors that I’ve seen, and I want to express profound thanks to the caregivers, the nurses and doctors and all those who are working hard here… for the work that they are doing on behalf of our country, on behalf of our people. To those who are ill, I take the opportunity to wish them a very speedy recovery and hopefully they will be spending New Year’s at home,” he said.
Lisa Ramotar said this was her first visit to the hospital, after returning to Guyana several months ago, after completing her studies.
She too, said she was happy to bring some level of joy to those hospitalised at this time when many others are spending time at home with their families.
Children visiting their siblings along with staffers on duty at the Paediatric Ward also received presents from the head of state. The annual Christmas visit to the Paediatric Ward by the head of state has been an established tradition for many years, the Government Information Agency (GINA) reported.
