photo by Everton Barnes
Regional health leaders have converged in St. John’s this week for high-level talks on how the Caribbean can better detect and respond to public health emergencies.
The workshop, hosted at Jolly Beach Hotel, is bringing together officials from Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Lucia, Haiti, and Antigua and Barbuda. It is being coordinated by the Ministry of Health in partnership with the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) and the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team.
photo by Everton Barnes
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Colin O’Keiffe, welcomed the delegates and stressed that the timing could not be more crucial. “By continuously improving how we collect, analyze, and use data, we strengthen our ability to make the right decisions at the right time,” he said, adding that the benefits will extend beyond Antigua and Barbuda to the wider region.
CARPHA’s Senior Technical Officer for the OECS, Chatoyer Bobb, echoed that view, pointing out the Caribbean’s unique vulnerabilities to crises such as pandemics, natural disasters, and emerging diseases. He reminded participants that the health challenges facing small island states demand stronger regional coordination.
photo by Everton Barnes
Quoting CARPHA’s Executive Director, Dr. Lisa Indar, Bobb emphasized that collective regional capacity is far greater than what individual countries can achieve on their own. “To meet these ever-evolving threats that test the resilience of our health systems, CARPHA is mandated to bolster the response to public health threats,” he said.
Over the coming days, participants will exchange expertise and develop strategies designed to reinforce the Caribbean’s preparedness and resilience in the face of growing health challenges.
Meetings are good, but the key will be implementation. Policies and plans must translate into real resources and training on the ground.
Health is wealth. I hope this meeting brings about the change required.
It’s great to see regional health leaders collaborating on such an important issue. My only issue is that many of these thigs are talkshops. The partnership with CARPHA and the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team is promising, as it brings in valuable expertise and resources.But what we wnat is to see tangable results . It will be interesting to see what strategies and plans emerge from these discussions, especially in light of the health crises many regions face.
Why do we always wait to have these sort of workshops inside the hurricane season. Why can’t it be held I. Late may or every June the start of the season.
And what new comes out of these meetings anyway.
For some it’s just a free trip to get more stamps in their passport
CARPHA always says the right things, but do governments follow through?
This is exactly what the region needs, one island alone can’t fight pandemics or disasters. Teamwork is survival.