Guy Ah-Moye: London GP who led reform of health services in his native Seychelles

Abstract

When Guy Ah-Moye returned to his native Seychelles in 1970 after medical studies in London, he sailed on the British India ship with his trusty bicycle. On embarking, wearing nothing but shorts, he rode straight to the home of his friend Marcel Fayon, the local tennis champion, with both legs in the air and shouting with joy: “Sove ma kraz zote (Save yourself, I’ll crash into you)!” Delight at returning home turned to dismay when he discovered the conditions of the British colony’s medical services, including the use of blood pressure drugs that had long been obsolete in the UK. “It was rather primitive. There were lots of people dying from tetanus and leptospirosis,” he told the Today in Seychelles newspaper. As one of only a few doctors in the country Ah-Moye quickly established himself as a leading figure. He recognised that reform and modernisation were needed and he introduced specialist psychiatric care, family planning services, measles vaccines, and modern treatments for diabetes. He was appointed acting chief medical officer in 1977—he took a business studies course, devised a five year plan to shape the country’s primary healthcare …