Health

Statement From The Ministry Of Health And Wellness On The Local COVID-19 Variant Testing

Chief Medical Officer, Dr. the Most Honourable Kenneth George, recently expressed the Ministry of Health and Wellness’ commitment to implementing local variant testing as the incidence of respiratory illness was increasing. At the time, the Chief Medical Officer indicated that Influenza A and B and COVID-19 were among the circulating viruses. He also stated that the Best dos Santos Public Health Laboratory had the capacity to test for many of the new respiratory viruses and strains of COVID-19 that were in circulation.

In this regard, the Ministry of Health and Wellness is informing the public that test results have revealed the newest strain of COVID-19, the JN1 (a sub-variant of Omicron) has been detected. The public is reminded that although COVID-19 is no longer a disease of international public health concern, transmission of the virus has not stopped. Therefore, the Ministry continues to test and monitor for COVID-19 strains and report to public as necessary.

The Chief Medical Officer emphasised that the mask mandate has not been reintroduced. However, the usual precautionary measures for preventing the spread of respiratory illness should be taken into consideration, particularly by vulnerable persons such as the elderly, pregnant women and persons living with chronic non-communicable diseases. In these situations, frequent hand washing, respiratory etiquette and wearing of masks are proven methods to reduce transmission.

The Ministry of Health and Wellness reassures the public of its intention to remain steadfast in its efforts to advise on COVID-19 developments, as it remains dedicated to safeguarding public health. (PR/GIS)

Health

Antimicrobial Resistance Week, Mon Nov 18 – Sun Nov 24

Health

More Nurses Arrive From Ghana

Barbados’ nursing complement has been boosted with the arrival of 155 nurses from Ghana at the Grantley Adams International Airport, yesterday.

The nurses, who were accompanied by Ghana’s Deputy Minister of Health, Adelaide Ntim, were greeted by Minister of Health and Wellness, Senator Dr. The Most Honourable Jerome Walcott, and other officials.

This is the third cohort of Ghanaian nurses to be dispatched to Barbados since 2020, to address the local nursing shortage. Ninety-five nurses came in the first group during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, while 120 more arrived in 2022, some of whom are still employed here and have made Barbados their home.

Minister Walcott explained that the nurses would be assigned to various specialty areas of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and the Ministry of Health and Wellness’ primary care facilities. These areas include cardiology, accident and emergency theatre, midwifery, psychiatric medicine, and geriatrics.

“So, we’re looking for these nurses to help improve the overall delivery of our healthcare,” stated Dr. Walcott.

Ms. Ntim said Ghana had a surplus of nurses, some of whom were not even employed. She said she welcomed the partnership with Barbados.

The Deputy Minister of Health added that nurses from the previous cohorts proved that they were more than capable of doing their jobs, and expressed confidence that the most recent cohort would also “deliver”. (PR/GIS)

Caption: Minister of Health and Wellness, Senator Dr. The Most Honourable Jerome Walcott, in discussion with Ghana’s Deputy Minister of Health, Adelaide Ntim, at the Grantley Adams International Airport yesterday. Senator Walcott was on hand to welcome 155 Ghanaian nurses to Barbados

Health

CHANGES TO HEALTH CARE SYSTEM

The Ministry of Health will soon roll out a number of changes to the island’s primary healthcare system, in order to drastically address the high numbers of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) seen among the Barbadian population.
This announcement was made by Senior Minister of Health and Wellness, the Most Honourable Dr. Jerome Walcott, as he presented a token of appreciation to Dr. Trevor Hassell in recognition of his outstanding efforts in educating Barbadians on the importance of addressing non-communicable diseases NCDs.
Walcott said, “I have a personal mandate that we should try to reduce the premature adult mortality from NCDs by a third. It is not impossible, it can be done, and in the course of the next few weeks, you will gradually see a roll out of parts of this process.”

He stressed “You will see the plans for primary healthcare; everybody is focused on QEH and tertiary healthcare, but the fundamentals of healthcare have to do with primary healthcare. The ability of early prevention, detection to get better health outcomes. We are looking at that in a project to be discussed soon.”
The Health Minister also revealed that additional screening for a variety of NCDs and cancers will also be made available.
“Within the ministry we are looking at a number of screening processes. We are looking to roll out before the end of this month a colonic screening process initially in two polyclinics, and thereafter we expand. We are looking at a cervical cancer screening process; we are looking at providing mammography services within the QEH again as was previously done up until 2008 where persons can have access to mammograms again for early detection and treatment for cancers.