St John Association of Guyana

Who we are

The St John Ambulance Association was established in 1933 and the Brigade in 1951, following a visit by the British Commissioner-in-Chief, Lieutenant General Sir Otto Lund. After independence in 1966, St John declined in numbers and resources despite the creation of a community care project in the mid 1980s. The St John Council was re-established in Georgetown in August 1991 by Mrs Christobel Hughes. St. John has a division in Linden, which is under contract to the local hospital and mining company. This division has an ambulance. There is also an active division in Berbice.

Guyana at a glance

Guyana, officially named the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is the only nation state of the Commonwealth of Nations on the mainland of South America. Guyana lies north of the equator, in the tropics, and is located on the Atlantic Ocean. Guyana is bordered to the east by Suriname, to the south and southwest by Brazil and to the west by Venezuela. It is the third smallest country on the mainland of South America. Culturally it is more associated with the Caribbean than with Latin America and is the only English-speaking country in South America.

The population of Guyana was estimated in 2003 by the UN to be 765,000. The main economic activities in Guyana are agriculture (producing rice and Demerara sugar), bauxite mining, gold mining, timber, shrimp fishing and minerals. The sugar industry accounts for 28% of all export earnings. Current economic problems include a shortage of skilled labor and a deficient infrastructure.

What we do

First Aid Training: St John Guyana has two full time trainers paid by the Guyana Defence Force. They train various companies and the sugar corporation in First Aid, in Georgetown and elsewhere. They also attend Disaster Preparedness Committee meetings run by the Civil Defence Fund and run first aid classes in the afternoons at the St John headquarters. Classes are also run in home-based nursing.

Youth: Cadets was first introduced in 1956 and training took place in schools. A renewed cadet scheme was launched in 1994.