This NCD Civil Society Response in Support of the 2023 Bridgetown Declaration to be adopted this week, provides key messages and follow-up recommendations by the Healthy Caribbean Coalition and the NCD Alliance.

It represents civil society’s ongoing contribution to the development of the 2023 Bridgetown Declaration and accompanying Annexes for adoption at the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Ministerial Conference on Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs) and Mental Health (14-16 June 2023). The recommendations are the result of NCDA’s and HCC’s involvement in the process so far.

It is hoped that this Conference will be a turning point for SIDS, supported by the global community, to accelerate action on the largely preventable burden of NCDs, including mental, neurological and substance use disorders (MNSDs), that disproportionally impacts SIDS. People living in SIDS are at higher risk of dying prematurely from a major NCD, and SIDS show the highest rates of childhood and adult obesity worldwide.

Read the response document

The post An NCD Civil Society Response in Support of the 2023 Bridgetown Declaration appeared first on Healthy Caribbean Coalition.

The Mahdia Secondary School student, who was badly burnt in last week’s dormitory fire, has undergone her first of many surgeries in a New York hospital, Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony said Tursday. He said the 13-year old girl, who was flown out of Guyana aboard an air ambulance on Saturday, successfully underwent surgery earlier ...

The University of Guyana says it shares the grief and extends deep and sincere condolences on the loss of lives, property and trauma experienced in the Mahdia fire in the wee hours of Monday morning. Institutionally, the University has immediately activated several mechanisms internally and externally aimed at  ascertaining any students and staff who may ...

“For more than a ...

WHAT DOES A FOOD POLICY HAVE TO DO TO EARN THE TITLE ‘HEALTHY’ AROUND HERE?

Take a dive into some answers to that question!

WHY IS ‘PEOPLE OVER PROFIT’ A STATEMENT WE NEED TO GET BEHIND?

It seems obvious, right? We should always prioritise people over profit!

But in practice, our policymaking doesn’t seem to always live up to that principle, and that lapse is harming us all. Although it’s easy to spout that, “eating healthy is an individual’s responsibility”, how easy is it to make healthy choices in environments designed to push the unhealthy ones?

Healthy Food Policy makes a difference to our food environments; so just how crucial is it to the health of Caribbean people?

HOW CAN YOU MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE?

EVERYONE!

Share these campaign materials with your network so they understand these issues better.

GOVERNMENTS AND POLICYMAKERS!

You have a vital role to play.

• Establish clear guidelines— with transparent rules for public-private engagement and partnerships— to manage conflicts of interest and foster transparency.
• Invest in the implementation and enforcement of policies that are informed by sound, scientific evidence that is free from industry influence and any conflict of interest. Policies like
  • Mandatory front-of-package nutrition warning labels (FOPWL);
  • School environment regulations like regulating the sale and marketing of ultra-processed foods in and around schools;
  • Marketing restrictions, especially to children and adolescents; and
  • Fiscal policies such as a sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) tax

These policies have been endorsed by CARICOM Heads of Government and recommended by WHO/PAHO, CARPHA, UNICEF, HCC, Ministries of Health and other key stakeholders. They’ve also been successfully implemented in several countries trying to reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.

FOOD INDUSTRY HEADS!

Respect the independence of policymaking processes.

• Focus your efforts on ensuring more products follow national nutrition guidelines (or the PAHO Nutrient Profile Model);
• Quit marketing unhealthy food and drink products to children; and
• Adopt front-of-package warning labels that are backed by sound, international and regional scientific evidence.

CAMPAIGN AT A GLANCE

Launch Date: Monday | 1.MAY.2023

Locale: Regional/Caribbean

Type: Digital Media Campaign

Purpose:

• To advocate, and build support for healthy, evidence-informed food policies.
• To bring awareness to the potential of policy to improve lives through healthier food environments and a reduction in non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
• To highlight the impediments of industry interference and conflict of interest to policy development.

OUR PARTNERS

OTHER CAMPAIGNS

The post People Over Profit appeared first on Healthy Caribbean Coalition.

On Thursday 27th April, 2023 almost 200 people took part in our webinar: Looking Back to Move Forward – Caribbean Youth Mental Health, reflecting on the ongoing progress and effects that the CYMHCTA has inspired in our Caribbean context and even internationally.

The objectives of the ‘Looking Back to Move Forward – Caribbean Youth Mental Health’ webinar were to:

1. To review the MHCTA objectives and their fulfillment
2. To highlight the primary and secondary effects of the MHCTA campaign
3. To highlight current and future regional efforts to better support youth mental health

Moderators

Neorgia Grant
HCY Member

Stephanie Whiteman
HCY Member and Project Lead MHCTA

Panelists

Gabrielle Edwards
HCY Member and MHCTA Lead in The Bahamas

Sahar Vasquez
HCY Member and MHCTA Lead in Belize

David Johnson
MHCTA Subcommittee Member and President and Founder, LUI OR

Simone Bishop-Matthews
HCY Member and MHCTA Lead in Trinidad and Tobago

Shannique Bowden
MHCTA Lead in Jamaica and Executive Director, JYAN

Dr. Karen Sealey
Chair TTNCDA, HCC Board Director and CSO Support to MHCTA team in Trinidad and Tobago

Ms. Jhanille Brooks
Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Consultant, UNICEF Jamaica

Maria Boyce-Taylor
Associate Director Client and Employee Engagement CIBC First Caribbean

Laura Lewis-Watts
Project Lead NCD Child Secretariat, NCD Child

Dr. Claudina Cayetano
Mental Health Regional Advisor, Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health, PAHO

Dr. Brian MacLachlan
Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, Psychiatric Hospital, Barbados

Find out more about the Caribbean Youth Mental Health Call to Action

Background

Mental health has been recognised as an integral element of overall health and as a basic and fundamental right,[1] however its limited prioritization and promotion in national health agendas or policies through the necessary financial and human resources, sends a contradictory message. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to expose the inequities – tolerated by our societies until now, not only in terms of our health but the socioeconomic areas linked to it.[2] Amidst the onset of this global pandemic, the mental health and well-being of groups such as health and frontline workers, women, young people, people living with pre-existing mental health conditions, racial and ethnic minorities, and people living in conditions of vulnerability, were particularly impacted.[2]

In light of this, youth from the Healthy Caribbean Coalition (HCC)’s youth arm – Healthy Caribbean Youth (HCY) and across the Caribbean region, embarked on a journey to advocate for and encourage more dialogue and action by our regional policymakers and the public, around the mental health and well-being of our children and youth.

On October 10th 2022, World Mental Health Day, the HCY, with support from youth advocates and civil society organizations across the region, launched the Caribbean Youth Mental Health Call to Action (CYMHCTA). It emphasized a renewed focus on youth mental health and wellbeing, by tailoring and transforming mental health systems in the Caribbean. Sparked by the concerns and experiences shared from youth and other key voices during two webinars held by the HCC, the CYMHCTA was conceptualised. To ensure adequate regional representation, stakeholders were consulted across ten (10) countries such as Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Lucia, The Bahamas and Trinidad and Tobago. This document could not be possible without the valuable input and feedback from over 50 consultations held with various stakeholders, including youth advocates, youth organisations, national civil society organisations, private sector, secondary school students, primary and secondary school teachers and underrepresented groups such as persons living with non-communicable diseases (PLWNCDs), and representatives from Indigenous and LGBTQIA+ communities.

Under the slogan of “There’s no health without mental health”, the CYMHCTA took the region by storm. It garnered regional support from government officials, youth organizations, UNICEF Jamaica and the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), as well as international organisations such as the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO). Youth from countries such as Barbados, Belize, Jamaica, The Bahamas and Trinidad and Tobago, spearheaded the movement in their respective countries and continue to advocate for the prioritization of the four (4) key calls highlighted in the CYMHCTA:

• Leadership-to prioritize integration of mental health into existing health policies and emergency plans and ensure youth are meaningfully engaged.
• Research-to inform mental health programming and policies.
• Regulations-to protect children and youth from health-harming products, harassment, stigma and discrimination.
• Services-to support the mental health and well-being of children and youth.

Since its launch, the CYMHCTA has amplified the voices of youth in the development of youth-focused mental health policies and plans. HCY members and other youth advocates, with support from in-country civil society organisations, continue to bolster, and foster, relationships with key policymakers. Consequently, being invited to high-level meetings with various national ministry representatives and other key stakeholders and; in the planning and development of youth-centered mental health programs and policies in Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago.

Register for the Looking Back to Move Forward – Caribbean Youth Mental Health webinar.

[1] “Policy for Improving Mental Health – PAHO/WHO.” 28 Feb. 2023, https://www.paho.org/en/documents/policy-improving-mental-health.

[2] “The forgotten victims of the pandemic: children and adolescents.” 13 Dec. 2021, https://www.cepal.org/en/insights/forgotten-victims-pandemic-children-and-adolescents.

The post Looking back to move forward – Caribbean Youth Mental Health appeared first on Healthy Caribbean Coalition.

The Guyana government has banned the use of chemicals to clean drainage calls across the country, after concerns were raised by residents of Ann’s Grove, East Coast Demerara. After the concern was raised raised by a resident during a ministerial outreach led by Prime Minister Mark Phillips, the Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha made government’s position ...

A panel discussion at the annual Abarca Forward conference in Puerto Rico last month sought to identify some of the innovative financial approaches that can be applied to managing the high price of novel therapies. Conversations also addressed what payers need for these financing models to be sustainable.

The University of Guyana (UG), now in its 60th year, is set to host its 2nd Diaspora  Conference at the Turkeyen Campus, Greater Georgetown, Guyana, during the period  May 8-10, 2023 under the theme “Calling 592: Honouring, Researching, Reigniting  Diaspora.” The Diaspora Conference is one of several signature events being hosted by the  University this ...