Georgetown, Guyana – September 22, 2025 – Guyana has crossed a historic threshold in healthcare with the opening of its first-ever Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) Clinic at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC). The facility, launched in partnership with the Center for Global Health at Northwell Health in the United States, marks a groundbreaking step forward in the country’s fight against severe mental illness.
The clinic brings new hope to patients battling major depressive episodes, schizophrenia, catatonia, and other psychiatric disorders that have resisted conventional treatment. Since the first procedure was performed in September 2024, 28 patients have already undergone ECT with remarkable outcomes, including reduced suicide risk, shorter hospital stays, and a renewed sense of possibility for families who once felt out of options.
“This is not only a clinical advancement, but also a major step forward in strengthening our mental health system,” declared Dr. Navindranauth Rambaran, Director of Medical and Professional Services at GPHC. “It demonstrates what is possible when international collaboration, local leadership, and institutional commitment come together in service of our patients.”
To make the clinic possible, ten Guyanese physicians and anesthesiologists received advanced training and certification in ECT, while Northwell Health donated two specialized machines to ensure sustainable service delivery.
At the inauguration ceremony, Minister of Health Dr. Frank Anthony hailed the clinic as a crucial leap in modernizing psychiatric care in Guyana. “Some patients are resistant to the treatments we’ve been giving in pharmacotherapy. You have to look at other forms of therapy, and ECT has proven to be very effective,” he said, adding that emerging brain research is helping the medical community better understand how such treatments work.
The event also featured Dr. Sohag Sanghani, Director of the Division of Interventional Psychiatry at Northwell Health, who highlighted the global significance of ECT, and Dr. Timothy Morgan, Director of Mental Health at the Ministry of Health, who praised the clinic as a “major step forward” for psychiatric treatment locally.
With its first ECT clinic, Guyana is signaling a new era of investment in mental health services. For patients and families long burdened by conditions resistant to medication, this facility represents more than just a medical milestone, it is a lifeline, and a beacon of hope.
