Trinidad and Tobago has recorded its 13th dengue-related death with health authorities saying Friday, that the number of cases had surpassed 1,300.

In a statement, the Ministry of Health said there were 1,315 confirmed cases of dengue fever across the country, with 13 fatalities so far this year.

It said that as of September 5, health authorities have also issued 914 yellow fever notices to property owners and occupiers, urging them to clean up their surroundings to reduce mosquito breeding sites.

Legal action is being considered against 43 property owners for failing to comply with these directives as the ministry reminds the public that dengue is spread by the bite of an infected Aedes Aegypti mosquito.

It is the same type of mosquito that spreads the Zika and chikungunya viruses.

Trinidad and Tobago recorded its first dengue-related death on June 19, when a 65-year-old succumbed to the virus.

The health ministry said that symptoms appear within five to six days of being bitten (and) last for one to two weeks.

It said the symptoms include fever, headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pains, skin rash, vomiting and diarrhea and that individuals showing such symptoms should seek immediate medical treatment.

SOURCE: CMC

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The primary goal of the HCC Communications under the Global Health Advocacy Incubator project remains to tackle childhood obesity and by extension non-communicable diseases (NCDs) through healthy food environments across the Caribbean with a focus on Barbados and Jamaica. This has been achieved through the development and implementation of communication and advocacy campaigns, guided by a strategic plan to reach target audiences including policymakers, the media and lay-persons. Our markers of success have been grounded in regional governments policy readiness and implementation.

The HCC continues to communicate with various target audiences through several channels. These include social media including WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, X formerly known as Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and digital, including our website, email blasts, RoundUp newsletter, and our webinars. The HCC has engaged both traditional and online media in our efforts to reach our target audiences. The media, being one of our primary audiences we have engaged through our webinars, hang-outs, one-on-one meetings, training sessions, sensitisations and now through the sponsored Caribbean Media Awards.

The Healthy Caribbean Coalition (HCC) expanded its awards this year, to include a Healthy Nutrition Food Policy Award under two (2) themes; Television and Print for the 35th National Gas Company (NGC) Caribbean Media Awards (CMA) of the Caribbean Broadcasting Union (CBU). This activity culminated the 55th Caribbean Broadcasting Union’s Annual General Assembly, which took place in Placencia Belize. The Awards recognizes the work of the media produced and published in 2023. Following the criteria, nominations were released in June 2024. Nestled in the Umaya Hotel, the Awards took place on the night of Tuesday August 13th, 2024. The Nation Publishing Company, having coped its first ever CMA, was awarded in the print category and the Barbados Government Information Service (BGIS) emerged the winner under the television themed category. Special mention was given to RJR Gleaner Communications Group (Print Themed Award).

The event was live telecast hosted by Great Belize Productions Limited – Channel 5. Presentations, Trophies and Certificates were made in fifty-five (55) categories. A record number of these – twenty-four (24) were themed categories supported by category sponsors including:

• UNDP CariSECURE2.0
• Healthy Caribbean Coalition (HCC)
• The Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre
• The Sagicor Financial Company Limited
• The Caribbean Development Bank Basic Needs Trust Fund
• The Nature Conservancy Caribbean Division
• The Partnership Initiative for Sustainable Land Management
• SAEDI Consulting Limited

The organisation with the largest number of wins was RJR Gleaner Communications Group from Jamaica with sixteen (16) awards and four (4) special mentions across its media services. Great Belize Productions – Channel 5 was second with eight (8) wins and two (2) special mentions. Trinidad and Tobago was well represented with Trinidad Express fielding five (5) awards and garnering four (4) special mentions. TTT Limited received four (4) awards and a special mention. The Guardian Group was successful in five (5) categories with two awards for CNC-3; two (2) special mentions for television service and one (1) for the print-arm-Guardian newspaper.

The theme for this year’s Annual General Assembly was the Media and the Environment. This theme, being quite expansive covers key areas of interest of the HCC including the food environment in which a healthy and nutritious environment supported by healthy nutrition food policies allows individuals to grow, live, learn and thrive and climate change; which impacts heavily on the kind of food environment we have at our disposal. Food security relies heavily on and is impacted by climate change.

• The BGIS award – “Grow Green Barbados: Episode 3 – Organic Farming” – Aisha Reid, Mikul Elcock, David Bynoe, Esther Jones,  KathyAnn Husbands
• Nation Publishing Company (Barbados) It’s War – Donna Sealy
• Special Mention: RJR Gleaner Communications Group (Jamaica) – “Hungry Belly Children Can’t Learn” – Andre Williams

The HCC will also sponsor two (2) journalists for the 2024 awards (36th CMA) which has been announced will take place in Barbados in August 2025. This will be promoted at the Healthy Food Policy Virtual Sensitisation for Media Managers, Journalists and Partners in October 2024. The HCC was represented by Communications Officer Sheena Warner-Edwards in Belize, throughout the General Assembly. Participants experienced the culture of Belize through the food and the people. Both the Opening Ceremony and the Awards were streamed from Channel 5across HCCs social media channels.

Here are some photos from the event.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOH3Ow9mg_w

CBU Media Monitoring

• https://www.caribroadcastunion.org/cbu-events/cma/
• https://www.caribroadcastunion.org/2024/06/04/ngc-35th-cbu-caribbean-media-awards-announcement-of-nominees/
• https://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/lead-stories/20240817/rjrgleaner-group-continues-caribbean-media-dominance
• https://edition.channel5belize.com/winners-announced-at-record-breaking-35th-caribbean-media-awards/
• https://www.cbc.bb/news/local-news/cbc-cops-regional-media-awards/
• https://emonewsdm.com/sagicor-financial-company-ltd-supports-caribbean-broadcasting-unions-caribbean-media-awards/
• https://www.tv6tnt.com/news/7pmnews/ngc-35th-cbu-caribbean-media-awards/article_ab8b6898-5ab3-11ef-b9a5-9bfe1e50398a.html
• https://www.guardian.co.tt/news/gml-bags-two-cbu-journalism-awards-three-special-mentions-6.2.2082717.e8035f9f03
• https://magneticmediatv.com/2024/08/historic-health-professions-amendment-ordinance-and-regulations-2024-officially-signed-into-law/
• https://climatetrackercaribbean.org/featured/climate-tracker-fellows-shine-at-35th-cbu-awards/
• https://www.ttt.live/cbu-awards-2024/
• https://edition.channel5belize.com/caribbean-journalists-converge-in-belize-for-cbu-agm-media-awards/
• https://caribbean.loopnews.com/content/caribbean-tourism-organization-announces-2024-media-award-winners

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However, breast arterial calcifications (BAC) can be identified during routine mammography and have been emerged as independent prognosticators of cardiovascular risk. The study investigated how BAC interacts with coronary artery disease profiles as assessed by computed tomography (CT) by focusing on the implications of BAC 0 (absence of BAC) and its relationship with coronary artery calcification (CAC) scores, the severity of coronary stenosis, and the presence of high-risk plaques (HRP).

The study included a total of 443 consecutive female patients who underwent both mammography and coronary CT angiography (CTA) for clinical indications within a year. The patients were divided into 3 age groups: under 55 years, 55-65 years, and over 65 years. This research analyzed the prevalence of BAC 0 and its correlation with CAC scores, specifically the individuals greater than 300 Agatston Units (AU), the severity of coronary stenosis (defined as obstructive disease with >50% stenosis) and the presence of high-risk plaques.

The results revealed significant age-related differences in the prevalence of BAC 0. Younger women (under 55 years) with BAC 0 were highly unlikely to have a severe CAC score (>300 AU), with only 0.82% of these women falling into this high-risk category. However, this protective effect of BAC 0 diminishes with age. The prevalence of high CAC scores in the individuals with BAC 0 jumps significantly in women over 65, with a 16.58-fold increase in risk when compared to younger women. Women aged 55-65 also showed a marked increase in high CAC scores, with 12.1% affected.

When examining obstructive coronary disease, the study found that 18.2% of women with BAC 0 had significant coronary stenosis (>50% blockage). Again, this risk was age-dependent: 10.7% in women under 55, 14.7% in those aged 55-65, and 29.9% in women over 65 years. While BAC 0 seemed somewhat protective against severe CAC in younger women, it did not rule out the presence of obstructive coronary disease or high-risk plaques across all age groups. The correlation between BAC, CAC, and CAD-RADS (a scoring system for coronary artery disease severity) was weak, with no significant association between BAC and the presence of high-risk plaques.

The study illuminates that while BAC 0 may help rule out severe coronary calcification in women under 55, it does not reliably predict the absence of obstructive coronary disease or high-risk plaques in older women. Overall, this finding has important implications for primary prevention strategies by suggesting that reliance on BAC 0 alone in cardiovascular risk assessment may leave a significant proportion of women at risk, particularly the women over 55 years old.

Source:

Deeg, J., Swoboda, M., Bilgeri, V., Lacaita, P. G., Scharll, Y., Luger, A., Widmann, G., Gruber, L., & Feuchtner, G. M. (2024). Does the absence of breast arterial calcification (BAC 0) rule out severe coronary artery disease? A computed tomography angiography study. In American Journal of Preventive Cardiology (Vol. 19, p. 100724). Elsevier BV. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajpc.2024.100724

Santo Domingo.- The Ministry of Health, supported by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and other health sector partners, is enhancing the Dominican Republic’s ability to handle health emergencies, particularly those involving respiratory viruses.

To achieve this, the Ministry of Health, through its Epidemiology Department, conducted a workshop titled “Framework of National Programs for the Prevention and Control of Diseases Caused by Respiratory Viruses with Epidemic and Pandemic Potential.” The workshop involved collaboration with the National Health Service (SNS), the General Directorate of Livestock, and the General Directorate of Medicines, Food, and Health Products (Digemaps).

The workshop addressed the current status and gaps in the prevention and control of respiratory viruses, aiming to bolster surveillance, expand policy measures, strengthen epidemic response, and improve risk communication and community involvement. It sought to create a unified national strategy for managing influenza and other respiratory viruses with epidemic or pandemic potential.

Key health sector stakeholders, including the Association of Private Clinics (Andeclip), the Dominican Society of Pulmonology, USAID, Promese/Cal, and the National Public Health Laboratory Dr. Fernando A. Defilló, participated in the three-day training, which focused on technical cooperation and response strategies for respiratory diseases.

Santo Domingo.- President Luis Abinader addressed the Haitian crisis’s impact on the Dominican Republic during a recent meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Abinader highlighted the strain the situation places on the Dominican Republic’s migration, health, and education systems.

At a press conference, Abinader noted that approximately 6.5% of the Dominican Republic’s students, around 147,000, are of Haitian nationality. He also revealed that Haitian migrants account for 14% of hospitalizations and 34% of births in public hospitals, a situation he claimed is unprecedented in global health systems.

Abinader expressed concern over the increased migratory pressure resulting from the crisis, which affects public services and poses security risks. He emphasized the need for additional support from the multinational security support mission (MCS) and resources to strengthen the UN trust fund. The President also highlighted the importance of renewing the MCS mandate in October.

He reiterated the Dominican Republic’s commitment to working with the United States on regional security and stability, while acknowledging differences in perspectives on certain issues.

Lauriston Mini Stadium field, and the turf wicket and main field at Dover Playing Field are available for recreational activities in Carriacou

View the full post Access available to 2 playing fields in Carriacou on NOW Grenada.

Completed applications must be submitted to the Department of Public Administration (DPA) by email at registry@dpa.gov.gd by 16 September 2024

View the full post Bilateral Training Course: Medical Technology for Grenada on NOW Grenada.

Chief Operating Officer of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) Dr Christina Grenidge is expecting major improvements at the healthcare institution as it prepares to welcome significant staffing enhancements aimed at boosting efficiency and improving patient care.

The strategic additions include the roles of patient safety officers, a service improvement manager, nurse practitioners and clinical nurse specialists.

Greenidge detailed the transformative potential these roles are expected to bring to the hospital. Particularly, the introduction of nurse practitioners is seen as a pivotal move to enhance service delivery in critical areas such as outpatient clinics and emergency rooms.

“They can work in two very important areas of the hospital — outpatient clinics and the emergency room,” Greenidge told The Pulse radio shown earlier this week. She emphasised the need for clear guidelines on their scope of practice within Barbados, noting their established effectiveness in other health systems like in the United States, where they prescribe medications and manage patient care plans in collaboration with physicians.

“Nurse practitioners have made a difference in primary care, helping patients with chronic conditions live healthier lives. They will undoubtedly play an integral role here at QEH,” she stressed.

Moreover, the role of patient safety officers is highlighted as crucial in maintaining and elevating safety standards within the hospital. These specialists will be tasked with overseeing all aspects of patient safety, from monitoring wait times to ensuring compliance with medical care plans.

“Patient safety is at the core of quality healthcare management. These officers will play a key role in monitoring and ensuring adherence to safety protocols, which is vital for patient outcomes,” stated Greenidge, herself a certified patient safety officer.

This staffing overhaul is part of a broader initiative to address the pressing healthcare professional shortage that is not only a local but a global issue, affecting many countries including the United States and Canada. To this end, the Barbados government plans to create 142 new registered nurse positions over the next two years and is looking to recruit internationally, including from Ghana.

The comprehensive plan to reform the nation’s healthcare system was announced by Prime Minister Mia Mottley at a recent Barbados Labour Party meeting at the St Christopher School in Christ Church South.

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