A major non-profit group in Brooklyn has embarked on its fifth medical mission to Guyana, bringing what it describes as “quality medical care” to underserved people in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member-state.
Prior to departing on the night of July 31, Dr. Janice Emanuel-Bunn, president of APC (Action, Performance and Commitment) Community Services, Inc. and head of the medical mission, told Caribbean Life that the team’s mission runs from Aug. 1-10.
She said the team of 20 healthcare professionals and educators will endeavor to “meet the medical needs of the people.”
Besides Dr. Emanuel-Bunn, the team comprises Drs. Gordon John, Giddel Thom and Naomi Modeste, as well as nurses, health educators and counselors.
She said this year APC Community Services, Inc. has added two new dimensions to the Mission Research Project.
The prostate cancer project is directed by Dr. Modest of Lima Linda University, Dr. Cort of Athens University, and Dr. Emanuel-Bunn herself, of the University of Phoenix.
The community project, “SAVE the Sea Wall,” is coordinated by Latoya Gilgeous and Nisa Albert, Dr. Emanuel-Bunn said.
She said the latter project will “clean up and restore” the Guyana sea wall by “painting murals and adding bins to keep the area clean.”
On the night of July 26 APC Community Services, Inc. hosted a fundraising concert for the mission at Voice of Praise Radio Station, 1011 Utica Ave., Brooklyn.
The concert featured, among others, Wayne Johnson; Leandra Johnson; Brian Williams; Kiara Williams; Prof. Keith Proctor; Jeannie and Robert Bailey and their sons, Joel, 14, and Renaldo, 12; Wayne Cleghorne; Samuel Clarke; and Angela Cooper.
Over the past five years, Dr. Emanuel-Bunn said about 5,000 patients in Guyana have received free medical care, courtesy APC Community Services, Inc., whose mission statement states that, “by giving to the poor, we are lending to God.”
Earlier this year, the group conducted a very successful mission to St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
On that mission, Dr. Emanuel-Bunn said 1,300 patients received care; 800 dental procedures were done; US$10,000 worth of medications were distributed; 300 people participated in a health exposition; and 200 each participated in health and dental symposia.
APC Community Services, Inc. Medical Mission was founded in 2009 “in response to the urgent need for quality medical care” in Dr. Emanuel-Bunn’s homeland, she said.
