Some Barbados Community College (BCC) students struggled to cope in the online learning environment during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and had to seek help for mental health issues.

That disclosure came from principal Annette Alleyne who said that when most classes were conducted online due to COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions, the BCC management had received increased reports from the institution’s Counselling and Placement Centre about students with mental health challenges.

She said it was also noted in BCC Registrar Roger Worrell’s report that the number of students requesting extended studies had doubled between 2020 and 2021.

“It was unusual. A large number of students were asking for extended studies – another year and another semester – because some of them chose to defer from various programmes. In some instances where we had students doing clinicals, they couldn’t get into the sites to do their clinicals. But in a number of cases, the students had chosen to defer some of their programmes,” Alleyne said at BCC’s Convocation Ceremony.

“And then when students did their portfolio for the visual arts and so on, a number of . . . their pieces showed the struggle some of them had with anxiety, with loneliness, depression, etc. So we knew that it was a concern for the students during the online period and that is why we have made such a great push to have students come back face-to-face.”

She added that the Students Guild had also hosted a Mental Health Week focused on issues affecting the student body.

“[They] had various initiatives and activities that could help to alleviate some of the stressors that they were experiencing,” Alleyne explained.

The principal highlighted research conducted in the United States which indicated that students who experienced mental health challenges during the pandemic appeared to be ‘quiet quitting’ – that is, doing just enough to complete their studies and not going the extra mile.

However, Alleyne cautioned the new students that the “just enough and no more” attitude had serious repercussions in an extremely competitive world, as she told them that those who gave more were the ones who excelled and succeeded.

“If you are struggling with depression, anxiety, loneliness, there is help, ask for help. Join a club, form a study group, reach out to our Counselling and Placement Centre; there is help. If you are struggling with mental health challenges, do not be one of the one-third of college students who are quiet quitting,” she said.

The BCC principal also put the newcomers on notice that the excitement and euphoria they felt at the start of their college journey would eventually fade and they might begin to feel exhausted and even question why they were there.

“And it is at these times when you need your community, a friend, a study group, someone to be able to give a word of encouragement. And our theme for this year, One Community, Working Together, Achieving Together, becomes even more appropriate.

“Life will throw things at you – a pandemic, an ashfall, a hurricane, some weird weather patterns where roofs get blown off and so on, the unexpected loss of a friend or loved one, betrayal, these things happen in life. But what it is that will keep you going and keep you firm in the face of any of these adversaries will be your sense of purpose and what it is that you want to achieve,” Alleyne said. (AH)

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Speaking on Starcom’s Down To Brass Tacks call-in radio programme on Friday, Gooding-Edghill said he has met with the hospital’s senior leadership team along with the Minister of State responsible for QEH affairs Dr Sonia Browne, to review an Accident and Emergency Improvement Plan.

“What we will need though, is some additional resources and we are working on those resources. I have a follow-up meeting with the A&E leadership team and that will happen very shortly. But we have to remove some of the administrative functions and burdens from the doctors to allow the doctors in A&E to focus exclusively on [clinical duties],” he said.

“There are instances sometimes where a doctor may have to go and fetch information, a doctor may have to go and source some additional medical resources in order to execute and perform a task. That’s what I meant by some of the administrative stuff,” the Health Minister explained.

He told his radio audience that authorities are trying to work through that and are fine-tuning the improvement plan.

“Once we do that, we would also be in a better position … to give them some additional resources. For example, in terms of how you run and manage an ER. One of the things I think we will have to look at is the whole management of the ER itself and how that is administered. If you can take away some of those non-critical functions from doctors and have personnel focusing on those other areas, it would free up some of the time available for the doctors to do what they have to do,” Gooding-Edghill suggested.

He said when he reviewed the plan, it was exciting even as he engaged with the team.

“We have a plan to address minor cases that present to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. I have indicated before that the Queen Elizabeth Hospital is a place for reassurance. In my experience there, when people are feeling unwell, they go to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital for immediate treatment. They go to the A&E for example, as the first stop, because if they can’t afford to go to a private care facility, they would come to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, and that is where they have the best treatment, and they know the best treatment would be given to them,” the Health Minister contended.

He noted that even though A&E is an emergency facility, a patient with pain in some part of their body is not concerned about whether it’s urgent, they just want care and therefore go to the QEH.

“So therefore what we have to do, is to implement within the Accident and Emergency Department, a Minor Cases Unit, which would allow for example, patients to be fast-tracked based on the urgency of the cases they present and also that they present to the A&E department,” he announced.

“The Minor Cases Unit will also be suitable for patients. For example, if there is an injury that may require some resources from the hospital, of course they would go to the hospital. If there are other injuries for example, that are non-life or limb-threatening injuries, then obviously, the Minor Cases Unit can deal with those,” the Minister said.

Gooding-Edghill provided data to show the level of traffic that continues to pass through the A&E.

“The Accident and Emergency Department in 2019 registered 37,660 patient visits, 46 per cent of those patients that visited in 2019, accounted for hospital admissions. The remainder obviously were dealt with and discharged. Now in 2020, interestingly enough and obviously because of COVID and so on, there was a reduction. 29,667 patients would have visited the Accident and Emergency, and 49 per cent of the total were admitted. So, those statistics alone tell me very clearly that not every visit to the A&E would require hospitalisation,” the Minister of Health said.

“The issue here for Barbadians is the time that they have to spend waiting in A&E. And if we continue to improve the processes, I think that we will definitely see some improvement,” he said.

He also said that a Patient Relations Service, which is at the pilot stage, is currently in operation at A&E and on some wards, but will be expanded across the hospital in due course.

Gooding-Edghill also announced that the hospital would soon be measuring patient satisfaction based on a structured feedback system. He said too that having completed phases one and two of the A&E expansion project, the third phase is currently in the works. (EJ)

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Health authorities have announced an initiative to address the eye surgery backlog at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) and they are hoping to show significant progress in three months.

Minister of Health and Wellness Ian Gooding-Edghill told a Down To Brass Tacks radio talk show on Starcom Network on Friday that he is on a mission to cut the number of patients waiting for cataract surgeries and to improve care in the shortest possible time.

The minister promised to monitor the situation over the next three months, assuring the public that if the numbers did not reach the targeted level, he would turn to the Cubans for additional manpower. He said when he took up the ministry, there were 1,750 patients waiting for cataract surgery, but after meeting with the Department of Opthalmology, he was assured the backlog had started to be reduced.

“On a monthly basis, I am requesting the number of surgeries being performed on the patients with cataracts. The information I will give you will be at September 12. We have conducted 34 public surgeries. Those were surgeries that were performed.

“Back in July there were 68 completed and in August, the number was a bit lower, 34, but there were issues related to doctors with COVID and therefore they couldn’t operate. What has been provided to us is that the opthamologists are prepared to do at least 95 cases per month,” Gooding-Edghill said. He noted that the eye specialists had experienced some challenges with the equipment, almost all of which have now been resolved.

“We have had to source additional packs. These are packs that are used for cataract surgeries, and we are expected to receive 120 from Trinidad and Tobago and another 300 from a local supplier this week,” he revealed.

Gooding-Edghill also said he had directed the QEH to ensure it has at least 750 packs to ensure that there are no delays in surgery due to the unavailability of such packs.

“We have also identified additional space at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital that can be easily retrofitted to allow for more surgeries to be performed,” he told his radio audience. “We are taking steps to bring this on stream. But I can tell you we are committed to reducing the backlog without compromising other eye surgeries,” the minister said.

He disclosed that the plan also involves increasing the number of nurses so that cataract procedures can be done in the morning and in the afternoon.

“In the longer term, we will also have to look at another theatre. We are working on that. But our immediate goal is to clear the backlog of cataract surgeries, and I give you the assurance that I will be monitoring progress on a monthly basis,” he pointed out.

“There has to be a high sense of urgency in dealing with the cataract because obviously, it can lead to blindness,” he added.

“We will ensure that the doctors have the equipment and they have the necessary resources. But at the same time, we have to measure progress because if we still have a population asking and people complaining that they can’t get the surgeries, then we have to have plan B.

“So plan B is an opportunity to seek assistance where required and if necessary,” the minister pointed out. “What I will do is that I will monitor the monthly reports, I will see where we are going over the next three months in respect of the number of surgeries performed.

“Obviously, if we hit the target, everything is a home run as they say in baseball. If that doesn’t happen, I must tell you that I will have to continue discussions with the Cuban Ambassador with a view of obviously having additional resources to mobilise to get to Barbados,” he disclosed.

Emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb

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Government is willing to do all in its power to ensure that Barbadians have access to pharmaceuticals and medical services at an affordable cost to control the rising incidence of non-communicable diseases on the island.

Prime Minister Mia Mottley, speaking during Friday’s groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of a $12 million, 24-hour, urgent care centre at Bayview Hospital expressed the hope that a sensible solution could be reached without going the route of price controls.

She stated: “This government is prepared to take action now to protect us and our consumers in the area of medical services because we believe that it is not only the supermarket or it is not only at the gas station that we seek to control prices, but also in the delivery of services across the entire spectrum.”

“I say so, conscious that as I have met with the private sector to deal with food costs and to ask them to cap their mark-ups between 15 and 20 per cent that regrettably in the area of pharmaceuticals, we continue to face markups in this country that are prohibitive and unacceptable especially in this environment within which we are functioning.”

The Prime Minister pointed out that industry stakeholders also had a duty to ensure that they don’t price themselves “out of people’s reach especially at this particular time” noting that she hoped that the sense of volunteerism that characterised the social partnership and the “way we do things,” would also guide this process.

Mottley said that the social cost of keeping the prices as they are currently, is a situation that should not continue, given the challenges with the high prevalence of non-communicable diseases.

The Prime Minister maintained that citizens must not stay at home instead of seeking medical care on account of the high costs involved. Mottley also shared that ongoing work with the World Health Organization to map out an affordable national health insurance scheme would continue with a decision expected sometime next year.

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Stakeholders are taking steps to remove unhealthy food options from the school canteens.

Chief Education Officer Dr Ramona Archer-Bradshaw said with the new School Nutrition Policy approved by Cabinet, they are going all out to ensure that local but healthy foods will be used to feed the nation’s youth.

“I recommend that we rely on foods that are grown locally and regionally in the preparation of lunches and snacks for our school-aged children. We need to think about how we can prepare local foods such as breadfruit, potatoes, eddoes, yams and green bananas so that they become the foods of choice for our young people,” the Chief Education officer said.

She was speaking at a virtual Vendors Training Session put on by the Childhood Obesity Prevention Programme of the Heart & Stroke Foundation, on Saturday.

“It is true that our children are generally not accustomed to these foods so we have to think about strategies and dishes that are prepared with these ground provisions that are attractive and tasty. Rather than the pasta and the English potato dishes with which they are very comfortable,” she said.

Archer-Bradshaw also raised the issue of high salt, fat and sugar intake, which she said can lead to children being overweight and be the main cause of cardiovascular diseases.

Chairman of the Barbados Childhood Obesity Prevention Coalition Dr Kia Lewis opened her presentation by asking,”Are we setting our children up for success?”

“I want to say that the decisions that we are making for our children now is going to affect their health in adulthood and collectively it is going to affect the future health of our nation,” she pointed out.

“The health decisions that we are teaching our children in their formative years, that often lay the foundation for the health and practices that they are going to continue into adulthood and they are going to pass it onto their children.This is very much generational,” Dr Lewis said.

In May 2022, the Cabinet of Barbados approved the School Nutrition Policy and the Ministry of Education will be implementing strategies in the new school year to make the school environment a healthier one. (MR)

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Barbados’ only confirmed case of Monkeypox, a Barbadian man in his twenties, has fully recovered, the Ministry of Health and Wellness said on Monday.

The ministry also disclosed that there have not been any associated cases with this index case which was reported three weeks ago.     

In a statement on July 16,  Minister of Health and Wellness Ian Gooding-Edghill said the man, who had travelled, had sought medical attention at the Winston Scott Polyclinic with symptoms of a progressive rash, body pains and fever within hours of his arrival in Barbados.

The Ministry advised persons who have a travel history and who are experiencing any unexplained rash, swelling of the lymph nodes or who have been in contact with persons with a rash to seek medical attention at their nearest polyclinic.

The ministry disclosed surveillance at the ports of entry has been enhanced as it continues to be on alert for Monkeypox. 

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Chief Medical Officer, Dr. The Most Honourable Kenneth George, is informing the public that Pfizer BioNTech, authorised by the Food and Drug Administration, has extended the recommended expiration dates of COVID-19 Vaccines from nine months to one year from the date of manufacture.

This means that the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines available in Barbados with the manufacture date of November 2021 have a 12-month shelf life until October 31,

2022.

The Chief Medical Officer assures the public that the Pfizer COVID Vaccines administered remain safe and effective and still offer an opportunity for controlling the spread of COVID-19.  He states that the Pfizer vaccines for COVID-19 will therefore continue to be available until the end of October 2022.  The Ministry of Health and Wellness will continue to source COVID-19 vaccines on the open market.

The supporting documentation regarding this change in expiry date is entitled “Expiry Information for All Three Vaccine Presentations” and published on April 26, 2022.  It may be found at https://www.cvdvaccine-us.com/images/pdf/Expiry_Doc.pdf.

The Ministry of Health and Wellness, in the best interest of the public, will continue to provide updates on important matters particularly as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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The region’s main public health agency has put residents of Barbados and other Caribbean states on alert for two new highly-contagious COVID-19 variants and the reemergence of polio in the Americas.

The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) also predicted that the BA.5 variant will cause a massive increase in COVID-19 cases across the region.

In an interview with CARPHA’s Communications Manager Carlon Kirton, following the World Health Organisation’s recent declaration of Monkeypox as a public health emergency of international concern, the agency’s Executive Director Dr Joy St John expressed grave concern about these developments. She cautioned that the situation could worsen because of vaccine hesitancy and an anti-vax campaign being waged in and outside of the region.

Dr St John said CARPHA has expanded its range of tests and increased testing for the sub-variant of the Omicron variant.

“It’s mainly BA.5, some BA.4. BA.5 is pushing everything else. But we are also seeing BE.1 and BF.1, which act just like BA.5 and spread very quickly,” she reported.

“We will continue to monitor what’s out there in the world, what’s of concern in terms of global transmission so that we would be able to keep on top of the detection tests like what we are doing for Monkeypox and the gene sequencing like what we are doing for COVID-19.”

The public health executive singled out the BA.5 sub-variant, cautioning that it is expected to be responsible for a jump in COVID-19 infections in the Caribbean.

“The need for PCR tests has reduced considerably as we have gone into this new phase of the pandemic. However, the need for gene sequencing has not. The [CARPHA] member states still want to know about gene sequencing because they need to keep on top of what is circulating and how they need to change management.

“For example, now that we have BA.5 circulating, the member states are aware they are going to get lots and lots and lots of cases. There may not be that many that are severe, and there may not be that many that go on to death, but they know there is going to be an increase in cases, so they are on the alert for that,” she said.

Meantime, the CARPHA boss cautioned that the disabling disease polio, which had been eliminated from the Americas more than 30 years ago, could resurface in the Caribbean.

The first case in this hemisphere in the last three decades was reported on July 21 in a young unvaccinated man in New York City. Health officials said he was infected by a strain related to the live oral polio vaccine, which is used in some parts of the world but has not been used in the US since 2000.

“I must confess that although polio has not been declared a public health emergency of international concern, because we are only looking at one case, it is a cause for concern for CARPHA,” Dr St John said.

“First of all, this region of the Americas eradicated polio decades ago. So, for us to see a new case, even though it is one, is of concern to me.”

She said this was particularly worrying because of an anti-vax campaign that surfaced during the COVID-19 pandemic and was affecting other immunisation efforts.

“Apart from the fact that there was an anti-vax sentiment outside of the Caribbean before COVID-19, since COVID-19 there has been an increase in anti-vaccination sentiments. Vaccine hesitancy is something that we are dealing with even for the pandemic. And so, our percentage coverage of immunisation for polio and other vaccine-preventable diseases has not been as good as it should be,” the senior public health official said.

Addressing the fallout from the anti-vax movement, she said it has dealt a devastating blow to the region’s vaccine uptake efforts.

“Vaccine hesitancy, anti-vax sentiment, and a serious campaign which is being waged through social media has definitely impacted the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines and has already started to impact the usual vaccination programmes,” Dr St John said.

“There are stories of persons who not only said they were not getting the COVID-19 vaccines, but they stopped their children from getting it and they stopped their elderly relatives, so it is very disturbing from that perspective. But once that kind of sentiment raises itself, it is going to impact on regular vaccination programmes,” she maintained.

Meantime, addressing the Monkeypox virus, the top CARPHA official noted that people are now presenting with new symptoms.

“The way in which this Monkeypox infection is showing up is different. People are speaking about really severe lesions in strange places. People are talking about the swelling of lymph nodes so that they protrude through the skin, even two inches out from where they normally would be. There are even reports of people who could not walk because their lymph nodes were so inflamed. So the way in which Monkeypox in this outbreak in non-endemic countries is exhibiting means people need to pay attention and people need to ensure they are not infected, because they are people who are infected and they are travelling,” Dr St John pointed out.

She added that while there is a vaccination for Monkeypox, it may be out of the reach of small developing countries such as Barbados, not only because the cost is prohibitive but also because it is in short supply.

(emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb)

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The Director of Medical Services at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) has parted ways with the institution while calling for a review of the operating structures that have been in place since the healthcare facility opened almost 58 years ago.

Dr Clyde Cave, who has been associated with the QEH for more than four decades, said on Wednesday that the country’s lone public hospital needs more resources.

“I think, first of all, [there needs to be] recognition that the institution is underresourced and structures which were put in place when we moved in in the 1960s need to be reconsidered and re-resourced.

“And when I say re-resourced, it’s not just finance – although that is part of it too – it’s human resource development. The quality of the doctors encompasses the human and professional side and not just the technical side,” Dr Cave, who declined to renew his contract, told Barbados TODAY as he responded to a question about what improvements he would like to see at the QEH which opened its doors in November 1964.

“I would [also] like to see the caring and bedside manner get a little bit more prominence than it seems to have taken on in recent times,” he further suggested.   

Dr Cave, a consultant paediatrician and neonatologist, explained why he decided to leave the hospital at this time.

“My mandatory retirement was coming up in January and having gotten through the bulk of COVID, it was time for long-range planning and somebody else to take on the responsibility. I figured now would be a good transition for them and certainly a well-deserved rest for me. The contract ended, so I just didn’t renew or extend for the six months to January. I am out of here,” said Dr Cave, who started at the QEH as a medical student in 1978.

The specialist also reflected on his tenure at the hospital, particularly during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The last two years I wasn’t working as a paediatrician, I was in administration. We all know there were extraordinary times and challenges with COVID across the world. The QEH was no exception, and when called on to help in any way, you respond. I think during that time we were able to stabilise the ship. QEH was the one who responded nationally through our isolation centre and so on. A lot of other countries failed,” he contended.

“Given the situation and our available resources, we did a very good job,” the senior medical practitioner declared.

He pointed out that while the hospital looks to recover from the insults of the COVID-19 pandemic and faces a new viral threat of Monkeypox, there is planning for what comes next.

Looking back at the highlights of his career at the QEH, Dr Cave identified his management of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) as one.

“From the time I took over the NICU, we have seen a dramatic drop in the death rates. And I think that was due to services we implemented when we opened the NICU,” he said.

Dr Cave said that although he has left the QEH, he will continue to teach paediatrics at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Cave Hill Campus, train nurses in paediatrics and human resource development through the Shaw Centre for Paediatric Excellence which he heads, and remain with the World Paediatric Project to share his expertise with other Caribbean neighbours.

He said many children in other parts of the region do not enjoy full health care benefits and with international assistance, they are brought to Barbados and given the necessary care.

“It’s a slowing down, but not a stopping. I will still be running my office,” Dr Cave told Barbados TODAY.

Dr Chaynie Williams is now Acting Director of Medical Services.

(emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb)

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The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) has advised against imposing restrictions on people arriving from any country as it closely monitors the spread of the Monkeypox virus.

At the weekend, Barbados confirmed its first case of the virus which has been reported in 63 countries.

Minister of Health and Wellness Ian Gooding-Edghill said a Barbadian man in his 30s who recently flew into the island tested positive for the virus after he presented to the Sir Winston Scott Polyclinic.

Two other Caribbean countries, The Bahamas and Jamaica, have also confirmed cases of the virus.

“CARPHA is monitoring the spread of the monkeypox virus – looking at prevention and control. We have also commenced testing for the Monkeypox virus. At this time, CARPHA does not recommend restrictions on entry of persons from any country,” Executive Director of the Trinidad-based regional health agency Dr Joy St John said on Monday.

“Working alongside our member states, we will support activities and educate the public to protect the health of all within their borders.”

Dr St John urged member states to continue to remain on high alert for the importation of viral or other infections and monitor in-country syndromic surveillance systems for increases in fever and rash illnesses.

“We know that diseases do not recognise borders, and international travel makes us aware that no borders are secure from the threat of diseases, especially infectious ones. At this time, member states are in various stages of easing of restrictions for COVID-19 which severely impacted the region,” the CARPHA boss said.

Dr St John assured that the agency will continue to coordinate public health policy and work closely with member states and other public health partners to respond to public health issues.

“As part of our regional public health management, we provide assistance to member states through the development of tools for investigation and epidemiological monitoring, and personnel are prepared to respond in country to assist in the investigation and control of outbreak, should the need arise,” she said. (BT/PR)

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