“Despite the universal recognition that psychotropic substances are indispensable from a medical point of view, millions of people continue to suffer,” denounces the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) in its 2022 report on the drug market in the world. This organization of the United Nations system gives examples of problems such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, or substance addiction, recalling that mental health is among the UN Millennium Goals.

Although the report admits that this has contributed to raising awareness about these problems, it also warns that investments in medical care “have not met the demand of the population affected by mental health problems.” The INCB recalls that the World Health Organization (WHO) states that at least three-quarters of the world’s population with mental, neurological, and substance use disorders live in low- and middle-income countries, where mental health services and the availability of medicines are insufficient. “Between 76 and 85% of people with severe mental health disorders in low- and middle-income countries do not receive treatment for these disorders, including people living with epilepsy, of whom nearly 80 % reside in those countries,” says the INCB. In addition, it warns that humanitarian crises due to wars, climate change, or health crises have a “profound effect” on people’s mental health.

It especially cites health and emergency personnel, the elderly, children, and those who have problems with drugs or previous mental disorders. The Board refers to the double problem that the availability and access to psychotropic substances are insufficient in most of the world and that, in parallel, in some countries, there is an excess of prescription and self-medication with psychoactive substances. “Governments are reminded to ensure that those living with mental health problems have access to adequate treatment and the necessary medicines to alleviate their suffering and, therefore, can fully participate in society without stigma or discrimination,” claims the INCB.

By Marlon Madden

The COVID-19 pandemic can no longer be used as an excuse for the performance of the tourism industry, says Chairman of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) Renee Coppin.
In fact, she is concerned about the slow pace of recovery and calls for greater information sharing.
Coppin said while she was encouraged by the industry’s performance for 2022 which showed signs of a comeback following the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, more must be done to bring Barbados back to 2019 levels.
“In order to have your best performance you have to train hard, prepare fully, set aggressive goals and go up against your best competition. So Barbados has to be prepared to do all of these things because we have no more room for excuses. We can’t be here at the end of this year. It is time for us to get in the game,” said Coppin.
She was delivering her report during the BHTA’s first quarterly meeting for 2023 at the Accra Beach Resort on Wednesday, which had as its theme Women in Tourism: Making a Difference.
“We were very excited to see that in December, for the first time since the pandemic, arrivals exceeded our last normal year, 2019. While we ended the year 250,082 persons down on 2019 levels, what we are optimistic about is a sustained revival of our sector as we claw our way back to consistent performance,” said Coppin.
However, indicating that the issue of information sharing will be key to the industry’s continued recovery, Coppin said it will be important to get “good information and use it logically and intelligently”.
“Doing the right analyses, asking the tough questions and being prepared to face hard truths will be very important. When we look at our performance for 2022 relative to the rest of the world and the rest of the region, we are very aware that Barbados fell below global and regional averages in our pace of recovery,” she said.
Barbados’ tourism recovery was estimated to be around 66.2 per cent of 2019’s performance at the end of last year while the Caribbean recovery was recorded at 83.7 per cent and the global recovery at around 62.6 per cent at the end of 2022 compared to 2019.
“It is important that we look at these numbers and that we are very frank and very real as to where we are and do what we need to do to get back on track. We no longer have COVID as a justification and so we will need to interrogate our information even more rigorously to ensure that we are staying ahead of our competitive set and so that we in the industry are bringing our “A” game to the table,” she cautioned.
Coppin, whose report came a day after the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) reported that visitor arrivals to the region could surpass 2019 record levels, reported that for January this year, Barbados welcomed 58,492 stay-over visitors, or 81.8 per cent more visitors than the same period last year.
(MM)

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The information was offered by the director of Risks and Disasters of the Ministry of Public Health, Gina Estrella. Estrella indicated that there are no new reports of patients infected with this bacterial disease, with the total number of cases detected since the beginning of the outbreak in October 2022 remaining at 91.

The director of Immunopreventable by Vaccines, Luchy Vargas, said that a total of 36,784 people have already been vaccinated against cholera in the country.

Exercise is the main medicine needed to fight the scourge of Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in Barbados and the wider Eastern Caribbean, in addition to good nutrition.

While speaking on Saturday, the day dedicated to celebrating World Obesity Day, medical practitioners recommended how exercise should be used in patient care.

The Exercise is Medicine Initiative is a global movement by the American College of Sports Medicine, which was used to assess physical activity as a vital sign.

Speaking during the relaunch of the Barbados Association of Medical Practitioners (BAMP) ceremony over the weekend and the Exercise is Medicine presentation, Sports Physician and past President of the Barbados Sports Medicine Association Dr Rene Best encouraged doctors to use exercise as a vital sign similar to how they would check a patients’ heart rate or oxygen blood levels

“Physical activity is a vital sign and you should be documenting that. You should write that this person is getting 250 minutes per week of physical activity. That is the sign to show us that there is something to treat because if that number is zero in writing, you will interview them and try to change it,” he said, adding that it is not a difficult process.

He said inactivity was the one true pandemic before COVID-19.

“From 2012 the pandemic was physical inactivity and it is still going on and affecting us today and probably getting even worse,” he said.

Meanwhile Medical Practitioner Dr Kristyn Kirton shared that their recommendation to physicians is to follow the BRIEF system – an acronym for Baseline activity, Readiness for Change and Risk of participation, Intervention for the individual, Exercise prescription or Expert referral and F for Follow Up.

Baseline activity is to attain the vital sign of exercise to see how much the individual is doing.

“If they are doing nothing we need to use this visit to introduce the idea of exercise and if they are doing something we need to encourage them to keep doing so.”

As for Readiness for change and Risk of participation Dr Kirton said that the physician must look to see how ready the patient is to change.

She also encouraged physicans to intervene in monitoring the individual as a part of the BRIEF process.

As for Exercise Prescription or Expert Referral she said that this is all about the FIT principle, which is about Frequency, Intensity, Timing and Type. The frequency principle is how often a person will exercise, how difficult and when they should exercise and the variation of exercise that they should perform.

She also had this bit of advice for physicians:

“Like any other drug, remember to start low, go slow, stay within your limits, go with the patient and physician because if you know you can’t do a squat don’t advise them to do so unless you’re giving them a printout online or referring them to someone who can,” she said.

Also presenting were physiotherapists Sheldon Batemen and Marita Marshall who spoke on “Steps to Positive Systematic Change United Healthcare.”

“We have a big problem in the Caribbean and Barbados starting with our children – one in three children between the ages of 13 and 15 are obese. That speaks volumes. That should tell us a lot. That should shake us up. We need to do something and we need to do something fast,” she said.

While referencing statistics, which indicate that the English speaking Caribbean has the highest prevalence of diabetes, she said that systems must be put in place to do something about the climbing rates. (MR)

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Members of the public are invited to come out to a coastal sundown walk from Martins Bay, St John, to Bathsheba, St Joseph, on Saturday, March 11, beginning at 3 p.m.

The walk is being hosted by the Coastal Zone Management Unit (CZMU), as part of activities to mark Coastal Hazard and Earthquake Smart Month, March 1 to 31, celebrated under the theme All Aboard with Coastal Resilience.

The walk is geared towards showcasing the various coastal features along Barbados.  It is also a health and wellness family-oriented event for children ages five and older.

Bus transportation is available from the Warrens Tower II, Warrens, St. Michael car park, from 2:15 p.m. sharp.  Persons desirous of travelling on the buses are encouraged to visit the CZMU office at Warrens Tower II, Warrens, St. Michael, from Monday, March 6, to collect tickets between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Persons attending the walk are encouraged to bring water and wear long sleeves, comfortable shoes and loose clothing.

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In recognition of World Obesity Day, commemorated on March 4, the Barbados Childhood Obesity Prevention Coalition (BCOP) shared a letter of commendation to the Ministry of Education, Technological and Vocational Training for the February 15 launch of the National School Nutrition Policy. On hand to receive the letter from Dr Kia Lewis, Chairperson of the Barbados Childhood Obesity Prevention Coalition, was Deputy Chief Education Officer Joy Adamson.  

The BCOP Chair outlined that the new policy was a brave one to protect children in Barbados. The new policy removes sugar-sweetened beverages from schools and forges a healthier school food environment from April 2023. 

The school nutrition policy has been part of the ardent fight by the Coalition since 2019 and the group stands ready to support the Ministry through vendor training, building awareness about childhood obesity with all stakeholders including teachers, students and parents, and monitoring and evaluation of the platform to ensure the policy has the power to change the health of students across Barbados.  

The theme for World Obesity Day 2023 is Changing Perspectives: Let’s Talk About Obesity. When we talk, debate and share, we can change minds, shift norms and transform health outcomes. In Barbados, the conversation has been about advocating for policies and this has brought a massive change among parents, students and government, who recognized that the trajectory of the alarming levels of childhood obesity in Barbados was putting the health of children in jeopardy. 

A societal problem like childhood obesity will require a societal response. Research shows that in Barbados, one in three children between 13 to 15 years old are obese or overweight. This is alarming and puts the health of a generation under threat. 

Adamson thanked the Coalition on behalf of the Minister of Education, Technological and Vocational Training the Hon. Kay McConney gave the assurance that the Ministry will work with the Coalition and the Ministry of Health to help reduce childhood obesity. 

(PR)

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Santo Domingo, DR.
The Dominican Republic continues with low records of coronavirus cases, a disease that has caused 4,384 deaths and 660,814 affected in three years.

The General Directorate of Epidemiology of the Ministry of Public Health notified 14 new cases of covid-19 after processing 935 samples, of which 249 were PCR and 686 were antigenic.

Bulletin #1079 indicates that the daily positivity stands at 2.29 % and that there are now only 53 active cases.

Regarding hospitalizations, no persons are in Covid beds or Intensive Care Units.

Lessons from Covid

On March 1, 2020, the first case of Covid-19 was diagnosed in the country, and for three years, it has been fighting against the disease.

To know the experience, Listín Diario will gather four speakers and 12 panelists who have played essential roles in the fight against Covid-19 to expose the experiences and actions adopted by the country in front of the pandemic during the National Forum Covid-19, which will take place next Friday, March 10.

The activity, organized by Listín Diario together with the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra (PUCMM) and the Ministry of Public Health, is aimed at presenting the experiences of the work carried out in the management of the Covid-19 pandemic to see the lessons learned and the strengths left to the health system, three years after the diagnosis of the first imported case in the Dominican Republic.

The forum, which will have three large panels, will include the participation of the Minister of Public Health, Daniel Rivera, who will speak on the Management of the Public, Private, and Citizen Alliance, and Mr. Chanel Rosa Chupany, who headed the SNS, among others.

It should be noted that the latest variant of covid’s severity has lessened substantially, with mild symptoms and no hospitalizations. Also, the natural immunity produced by an infection prevents further contraction or spread of the virus.

AUTHORITIES RAMP UP EFFORTS TO KEEP AFRICAN SWINE FLU, BIRD FLU OUT

By Anesta Henry

Cabinet has approved the resources to bolster efforts to prevent African swine fever or bird flu outbreaks on the island.
Although not saying exactly how much had been provided, Chief Veterinary Officer Dr Mark Trotman said that in addition to monitoring outbreaks in other countries, the Ministry of Agriculture has been working closely with farmers to ensure they are implementing preventative measures to protect their pigs and birds.
There have been outbreaks of African swine fever across Europe and bird flu in parts of Asia.
Speaking from the well of Parliament as the Estimates Debate continued on Friday, Dr Trotman said the ministry has also been producing public service announcements to inform Barbadians about the two “serious” diseases, including the damage they had the potential to cause.
“At the end of the day, it is up to the farmers to put measures in place to prevent the entry of the viruses, whether it be bird flu or African swine fever. From an entry standpoint, we are doing some monitoring of landing sites because the bird flu is a highly pathogenic avian influenza, to use the correct term.
“This particular outbreak seems to be transmitted through migratory birds which is a little different from the previous episodes, which makes it a totally different beast to deal with,” Dr Trotman said.
He added: “So we are monitoring sites where wild birds come into the country. Barbados, as you know, is right in the middle of the Atlantic flyway; birds travelling south in the winter do rest in landing sites in Barbados and that poses a risk of entry of the disease into the country. So monitoring those landing sites becomes important, so if we do get birds that are potentially coming in we can pick that up.”
The Chief Veterinary Officer said officials have also been creating a database on the poultry and pork industry to identify where farms are situated and what risk factors exist, particularly if they are close to landing sites for birds.
He said that while there is an ongoing community outreach programme to register farms, there is evidence of a significant number of unregistered farmers.
Dr Trotman pointed out that these farmers do not access the services of the Ministry of Agriculture for technical support or veterinary assistance because they do not consider themselves farmers.
“We are putting GPS points on each of these farms so we have a good overview of where they are, not only so that we can identify them, but in the event of an outbreak we can map it and identify how the disease can possibly spread from there outwards.
“We have found that we have well over 1 500 pig holding areas, which were a lot more than we thought there were. The poultry industry, they are such a diverse group of farmers – you have your commercial entities, you have your small holders, you have your backyard farmers – and each of them has to have a tailored approach in terms of what they can do to protect their farms,” he explained.
With respect to the importation of pork and poultry products, Dr Trotman said as the need arises and outbreaks widen within certain countries, restrictions are being implemented to prevent the entry of the viruses.
“We put restrictions to prevent it from entering through passenger baggage, through commercial entries, while trying our best to safeguard a certain level of trade. We have had to take a more surgical approach to this rather than an outright ban on all poultry and pork products.
“We have done that quite successfully with countries such as the United States and Canada, and so we are looking to try to do it with the United Kingdom as well,” the Chief Veterinary Officer said.
anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb

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To avoid situations like the one that occurred a decade ago when hundreds of thousands of Dominicans contracted chikungunya, the doctor understands that it is necessary to protect oneself from the bite of the Aedes aegypti.
The also director of the Robert Reid Cabral hospital warned that chikungunya could cause lesions in different body organs, such as the heart and kidneys. By way of example, he cited meningoencephalitis, myocarditis, and pericarditis, among others.

Greater danger

Children and adolescents could be at greater risk should chikungunya spread in the country as it did in 2014.
The Dominican Republic has been under epidemiological alert since the World Health Organization spoke of the presence of the disease in The Americas.

Mosquito control Authorities advise eliminating standing water where mosquitoes could lay their eggs.

Once a week, empty, scrub, turn over, cover, or throw away any items that accumulate water, such as tires, buckets, flower pots, toys, swimming pools, birdbaths, flower pot dishes, and garbage containers.
Mosquitoes lay their eggs near water.

Protecting yourself from mosquitoes

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends controlling mosquitoes inside and outside your home. These include using window and door screens; using air conditioning if one is available; sleeping under mosquito netting if rooms don’t have air conditioning or screens on doors and windows, or if you sleep outside.

“Once a week, empty, scrub, turn over, cover or throw away any items that collect water such as tires, buckets, flower pots, toys, swimming pools, birdbaths, planter dishes and garbage containers. Check inside and outside your home. Mosquitoes lay their eggs near water.”

For children and infants, CDC recommends protecting infants and children from mosquito bites and dressing in clothing that covers the arms and legs. “When using insect repellent on children: Always follow directions when applying insect repellent to children.

Do not use products containing oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE) or para-menthane-diol (PMD) on children under three years of age.”

It also urges not to apply insect repellent to children’s hands and eyes or cut or irritated skin.

The Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) welcomed nine interns into the fold on Wednesday, March 1, as they began their one-year internship programme with the hospital, in partial fulfillment of the requirement to practice medicine in Barbados.

The doctors will work in the Internal Medicine, General Surgery, Obstetrics & Gynaecology and Paediatrics Departments during the next 12 months. 

In her address, Director of Medical Services Dr Chaynie Williams reminded the interns to work hard in their respective departments every day.  

Before welcoming them officially into the QEH, Dr Williams prompted the youthful doctors to utilise the assistance that is always nearby, citing that “there is always someone to call on to ask a question when needed”.  

The doctors were all smiles and appeared ready for the challenge as they proceeded to their assigned departments in the hospital. 

(QEH)

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