AI-powered initiative to enable continuous health monitoring through churches, mosques and temples nationwide
President Dr. Irfaan Ali on Thursday announced plans to establish self-testing centres in communities across the country, as part of a broader government push to improve preventative healthcare and reduce the burden of chronic disease.
The Head of State made the announcement while delivering remarks at an Artificial Intelligence Seminar hosted by the Ministry of Health in collaboration with Mount Sinai. He said the centres will allow citizens to monitor key health indicators such as blood sugar levels and blood pressure within their own communities.
“We’re gonna involve the churches and the mosques and temples in this. So, on a Sunday, when someone goes to church, they can come out and test their sugar levels and test their pressure and then we can input it into the system, the system collects the data and we can evaluate how that person is doing,” the President explained.
President Ali said the initiative will be central to the modern healthcare system the government is working to build, with artificial intelligence playing a key role in enabling continuous monitoring of individuals’ health. He noted that by leveraging AI, the system will allow for early identification of risks and the delivery of preventive care, ultimately supporting longer and healthier lives for Guyanese citizens.
The announcement builds on a series of related healthcare infrastructure investments. Last year, President Ali revealed plans to establish electronic containerised laboratories nationwide as part of a broader strategy to make diagnostic testing more accessible and enable early detection of conditions such as diabetes and hypertension. Those laboratories are intended to be fully integrated into the national health system and designed to conduct routine tests including blood sugar screening.
The government has also been rolling out two complementary digital platforms — the National Health Information System and the Patient Management Information System — which are designed to gather health data quickly, support early intervention, and improve diagnostic outcomes across the country.
