Jamaica is to receive technical assistance from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to strengthen its health systems and services. This follows Cabinet’s approval for the Ministry of Health and Wellness to enter into an agreement with PAHO for the provision of technical assistance through a voluntary contribution. Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Fayval Williams, made the disclosure...

Healthcare workers in St. James turned out in large numbers to take the first of two jabs of the COVID-19 vaccine, as the Government’s vaccination drive began on Wednesday, March 10. Doctors, nurses, community health aides and even pharmacists were among the 200 public healthcare professionals registered to receive the drug across three separate vaccination centres in the parish. These...

State Minister in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Dr. the Hon. Norman Dunn, says the Consumer Affairs Commission (CAC) has been closely monitoring the prices for coronavirus (COVID-19) tests at accredited labs to ensure fair trade. “The Ministry has tasked the Consumer Affairs Commission to be vigilant in the marketplace, to ensure that all the places that have...

Health and Wellness Minister, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, says public hospitals have been instructed not to turn away persons seeking medical attention, despite space constraints at a number of institutions, largely due to the heightened number of coronavirus (COVID-19)-related admissions. Speaking during Monday’s (March 8) COVID-19 digital press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) Media Centre,...

Public Health Nurse, Marcia Thomas-Yetman, is the first person in Jamaica to receive the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine. She was vaccinated at The Good Samaritan’s Inn in Kingston on Wednesday morning (March 10), exactly one year after the first case of the virus was confirmed in the island. Nurse Thomas-Yetman, who is employed to the South East Regional Health Authority (SERHA),...

As the Government continues to strengthen the nation’s coronavirus (COVID-19) testing capabilities, Chief Executive Officer of the Jamaica National Agency for Accreditation (JANAAC), Sharonmae Shirley, is assuring that only test kits approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health and Wellness are being used in accredited medical testing facilities. “Currently in Jamaica, the MOHW has only...

In light of the country’s increasing coronavirus (COVID-19) positivity rate, Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, is urging Jamaicans to comply with the measures implemented to reduce its spread. These measures include physical distancing, staying at home, avoiding crowded situations, frequently washing and sanitising hands and surfaces, adhering to curfew hours, wearing masks, and obeying the...