Health

Ageing A Major Concern For Government

With one in every five Barbadians now over age 60 and one in every four over 65 years, Minister of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs, Kirk Humphrey, believes this should cause “a bit of concern”.

He emphasised this last weekend while delivering the feature address at the conference titled ‘Towards 2050 Securing My Future Protecting My Legacy’, which was held jointly by his Ministry and the Barbados Association of Retired Persons, at the Hilton Barbados Resort, Needhams Point, St. Michael.

“It means that Barbados is actually getting older, at a rate that even though we anticipate it in ageing, it’s at a rate that we did not anticipate, and we must continue to plan for it,” said the Minister as he shared a “few thoughts” with participants.

Deeming the seminar as important, he said: “People may think that we are having this conversation because persons are now 40 to 59 years old, but I really think we need to have this conversation just because people are born and because we’re here. And, the reality of planning for getting older should begin from the day you were born. And the reason that most of us find ourselves in a spot of bother is because we don’t start the plan from the day we were born.”

While also stressing the future is not what it used to be, Mr. Humphrey said: “We had anticipated, as children, that when you get older that, as an older person, your children or your grandchildren would have taken care of you. We now know that that is not happening. Those systems have all been dissipated, and surely they have broken down.

“We anticipated that with a certain amount of older persons that the State would be in a position to do that. But at the rate at which we are ageing, the State will not be able to do it on its own. We expected that in our constituencies and in our communities, people would step up and take care of those who needed help the most. And, we’ve also seen that that is not happening. Therefore, the future that we had envisioned is not the future that we’re going to live. It requires that we start making substantial changes now.”

The Minister offered some suggestions to participants interested in planning for their retirement and an older age. Stating that it was not expected that persons would have a lot of money, he said: “But we do anticipate that people will have to be able to at least identify a family member or two, who they hope could help them as they get older. Or, if you get your gratuity payout, do not go and splurge.”

Also alluding to the role of the State, Minister Humphrey said it now also called for the State to find “a new way to be able to protect people, even in circumstances where they don’t recognise themselves, that they are being taken advantage of”.

Stressing it would require a conversation with the public as it required a relationship of trust, he added: “I think the relationship between BARP and the Government, between Soroptimist, between Red Cross, between any of the agencies that offer services to the public, for older persons for seniors must be built on trust.

“And, the Government will then continue to empower these organisations, but I feel that we now have to have a deeper trust relationship with the general public, so that we can encourage people and you know, to plan for their own retirement, to plan their future and so on.”

Participants were reminded that Government brought on 420 elder care workers to join the existing 200 home care workers that were at the National Assistance Board, that they have been doing a very good job in terms of taking care of some of the older persons.

However, Mr. Humphrey, lamenting that some families were no longer taking responsibility, said: “For this to work, we need everybody to be on the same page. And people have to take up their own responsibilities while the Government continues to be able to support it.”

Agencies which care for older persons were also placed on notice that Government would not entertain persons taking advantage of them.

Minister Humphrey stressed: “Let it be known that we have a zero-tolerance approach when it comes to anybody taking advantage of older persons, of our seniors, who would have done so much for us, and now in the golden years do not deserve a lot of the treatment that they are now getting….

“If a person has responsibility for taking care of a senior, but then they are borrowing money from that senior; that’s unacceptable. If you have responsibility for a senior and then you are taking the person’s pension check, you’re cashing it, many times without the consent of the family, that is unacceptable. If you go to the supermarket to shop for them and you also shop for yourself with their money without letting them know, it is unacceptable. ” (PR/GIS)

Caption: Minister of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs, Kirk Humphrey (second right) in conversation with BARP President, Marilyn Rice-Bowen (left), Special Advisor on Elder Affairs, Cynthia Forde (second from left), and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs, Jehu Wiltshire.

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.

Health

BMCLA Hosts Inaugural Bajan Cannabis Conference

Barbados is forging ahead in the medicinal cannabis industry with innovative solutions, despite the challenges being faced.

Acting Minister of Agriculture, Food and Nutritional Security, Wilfred Abrahams, stated this last Friday, while addressing the inaugural Bajan Cannabis Conference, at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre, Two Mile Hill, St. Michael.

Noting that this country is charting an exciting future for the sector, with a focus on transforming healthcare, empowering local entrepreneurs, and embracing digital innovation, he said this will allow Barbados to position itself as one of the leaders in the Caribbean in this lucrative and fast-evolving global industry.

Mr. Abrahams disclosed that “11 applicants, representing 33 licences”, had been approved to date. He added: “And we are committed to moving this industry forward. This announcement marks a major step in Barbados’ drive to develop a thriving medicinal cannabis industry that will contribute to both healthcare and wellness tourism.”

The Minister praised the Barbados Medicinal Cannabis Licensing Authority (BMCLA) for its efforts in assisting local entrepreneurs to join the growing industry by introducing a flexible payment plan. “This plan allows licensees to pay 60 per cent of their licence fee upfront, with the remaining 40 per cent paid in instalments over the first three years, … either monthly, quarterly, or annually,” he stated.

Meanwhile, acting Chief Executive Officer of the BMCLA, Shanika Roberts-Odle, pointed out that the industry continues to face significant challenges, particularly with the banking sector’s reluctance to support cannabis-related businesses.

To deal with this and other issues, she said three Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) were signed, which sought to overcome key hurdles and advance the development of the medicinal cannabis industry in Barbados.

The CEO noted that one of the most pressing challenges has been the lack of banking solutions for businesses in the medicinal cannabis sector, not only in Barbados but globally. To address this, she said the BMCLA partnered with M Money, a digital banking platform, to develop solutions that will facilitate local transactions for cannabis businesses.

Ms. Roberts-Odle pointed out that traditional financial institutions have been hesitant to support the industry due to regulatory concerns, and this had slowed investment and growth.

“While we haven’t completely solved the banking issue, this brings us closer and allows us to move money locally. Banking has been one of the biggest stumbling blocks, particularly in terms of facilitating investment in the industry,” she said.

The CEO disclosed that the BMCLA had also entered into a collaboration with Export Barbados, which is designed to support the marketing, testing, and manufacturing of medicinal cannabis products, ensuring that products are developed to the highest standards and marketed internationally. “It’s not just about growing the plant; it’s about marketing these products internationally and manufacturing them to the highest standards,” Ms. Roberts-Odle explained.

Also recognising the need for regional collaboration, she said the BMCLA signed an MOU with the Caribbean Cannabis Forum, which reinforces the need for a united Caribbean approach to cannabis policy, particularly when dealing with international regulatory bodies such as the World Trade Organization and the United Nations.

“Barbados has always recognised the importance of moving together as a Caribbean region. It has been crucial in protecting our interests on the international stage,” said Ms. Roberts-Odle.

She noted that the partnership also ensures that Barbados and its Caribbean neighbours continue to advocate for policies that reflect their unique relationship with cannabis, while also promoting responsible usage and industry standards.

She added: “We recognise the frustrations that people have expressed, but the transition from growing cannabis informally to producing medical-grade cannabis for immunocompromised patients is a vast leap. The BMCLA is committed to ensuring that our industry meets these high standards.” (PR/GIS)