After years of disability caused by haemophilia, 48-year-old Pooran Sookdeo is walking again following what the GPHC says was a complex surgical procedure made possible through international collaboration.

Sookdeo, 48, has been living with Hemophilia A and this has meant a lifetime of medical challenges. A release from the GPHC said that repeated bleeding into his joints gradually caused severe damage, particularly to his right knee, significantly affecting his mobility, quality of life and ability to work.

However, a landmark surgical achievement at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) has given him renewed hope.

On September 22, 2026, the release said that GPHC successfully performed a total knee replacement on Sookdeo through its partnership with the Louisiana Center for Bleeding & Clotting Disorders at Tulane University, New Orleans, facilitated through the World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH) Twinning Programme.

GPHC said that performing major orthopedic surgery in patients with haemophilia is particularly challenging because of the significant risk of bleeding during and after surgery, as well as potential complications involving wound healing and infection.

“Success therefore requires meticulous surgical planning, specialized clotting factor replacement, laboratory monitoring and coordinated postoperative care”, it said.

This procedure brought together the expertise of Haematology, Orthopedics, Anesthesia, Nursing, Physiotherapy, Laboratory and Operating Theatre Services, the hospital said.

The surgical team included Dr. Kaaleshwar Ramcharran and the GPHC Orthopedic team, working alongside Dr. Fernando Leon Sanchez, Professor of Orthopedic Surgery and Chief of Adult Reconstruction at Tulane University. Edgardo Javier, an experienced orthopedic surgical technician, provided essential technical and operative support.

The patient’s specialized bleeding management was coordinated by Dr. Kamela Bemaul-Sukhu, Consultant Haematologist, and Dr. Jamal Shamsudeen, Senior Medical Officer, Hematology, in collaboration with Dr. Maissaa Janbain, Associate Professor of Medicine at Tulane University and Director of the Louisiana Center for Bleeding & Clotting Disorders.

Nurse June Willery, of GPHC’s Hemophilia Nursing Service, collaborated with visiting Hemophilia Nurse Nicole Reynaud in specialized nursing care, treatment monitoring and patient education.

Vital 

The release added that the GPHC Physiotherapy Department, led in this initiative by Simone Seckle, played a vital role in postoperative rehabilitation, with additional specialist rehabilitation guidance from Kenneth Martin of the Louisiana team.

Sookdeo has since been discharged and is walking. He continues physiotherapy three times weekly, with no complications reported to date.

The surgery was part of a three-day WFH Hemophilia Treatment Centre Twinning Visit, held September 21–23, 2026.

The programme included clinical consultations, multidisciplinary case discussions, training in ultrasound-guided intra-articular joint injections and educational activities.

Visiting Obstetrician and Gynecologist Dr. Janifer Tropez collaborated with Dr. Natasha France and GPHC’s OBGYN and Hematology teams to strengthen the management of women with bleeding disorders.

Countrywide Continuing Medical Education (CME) sessions, delivered virtually, also provided healthcare professionals across Guyana access to specialist teaching on haemophilic joint disease, von Willebrand disease and modern approaches to managing bleeding disorders.