Vision Becomes Reality for New RT Degree Program in Guyana

After more than 10 years and countless hours of work, a new cohort of respiratory therapists will begin their healthcare journey this fall in the small South American country of Guyana. This is due in no small part to two AARC members, Sharon Armstead, EMBA, RRT, Concordia University – Texas Professor, and Waleema Bacchus-Ali, BSc, MD, PGDip, MSc, MBA, Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), Head of the COPD/Asthma Care, Pulmonary Rehabilitation Department, who are both Guyana natives.

The vision to create the RT program and improve respiratory care began in 2013 with the launch of the first-ever spirometry and asthma/COPD education program at the GPHC, Guyana’s only referral hospital. The Guyana Asthma/COPD Spirometry and Education Program (GASP) was pioneered by Dr. Robert Levy, a pulmonologist, and Carmen Rempel, a respiratory therapist. It was partly funded by the Cheisi Foundation, which helped birth respiratory medicine in Guyana and continues to provide training for staff and specialized care for patients.

In 2017, Armstead started the “study abroad program,” which brought her RT students from Texas State University to Guyana. Her students worked in the critical care, respiratory, and physical therapy departments and experienced a different medical culture while expanding their knowledge. This now aligns with Guyana’s strategic plans for advancing healthcare.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) of Guyana further recognized the need for respiratory care and requested the development of a new RT program. Armstead (Vision Guyana and international RTs), in collaboration with Bacchus-Ali and team members from the University of Guyana, GPHC, and Ministry of Health, worked together to launch a Bachelor of Science degree program in respiratory therapy in just 11 months. The first cohort of students started on Sept. 16, 2024, with an expected capped intake of 15 students. The program will be a collaboration with the University of Guyana and Georgetown Public Hospital, including clinical rotations with online classes from the international RT faculty and face-to-face with locally trained preceptors/instructors. This is the only program in CARICOM and the Caribbean and will stand to serve the people of Guyana and beyond its borders.

“My goal for Guyana was to promote and show the need for respiratory care professionals and to have that education offered at the University of Guyana as part of its allied health program. This goal was set almost 10 years ago by my mentor, Dr. Claudette Hetliger-Thomas (Bridges Global Medical), who has since passed. On a professional level, Guyana is expanding its health force, and with that expansion must come the critical care experts from the NICU to the post-acute care. On a personal level, I dedicate this to my parents and my mentor, who brought me back home. I am so grateful to have been a part of this process and to have been able to collaborate on so many levels with such outstanding professionals who are making a difference in healthcare and education in Guyana,” said Armstead.

The respiratory care program has adopted both the Canadian and American scopes of practice and adjusted them to represent Guyana’s needs. Licensure has been established, protocols, procedures, and policies are in the making, along with job descriptions/responsibilities.

The aim is for the RTs to have a job after graduation and a smooth transition into the workforce.