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Nutritionist, Dr. Pauline Samuda, says that while exclusive breastfeeding has increased in Jamaica, greater effort must be taken to ensure that the practice is sustained for longer than six weeks. Her comment came against the findings of an exclusive breastfeeding pilot carried out by the Ministry of Health, which found a fall off in exclusive breastfeeding rates after the first...

Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson has indicated that the Government will be pursuing Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) for the development of the health sector. Dr. Ferguson, who was speaking at Tuesday’s (January 29) press launch of Heart Month 2013 at the Spanish Court Hotel in New Kingston, said the arrangement is ideal, as it will facilitate private investments...

In keeping with its thrust to protect the nation’s children, the Ministry of Health is urging all parents to ensure that their children are adequately vaccinated for their age. Director of Family Health Services at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Karen Lewis- Bell, told JIS News that children must be adequately vaccinated, as immunization guarantees their protection against vaccine-preventable illnesses,...

Health Minister, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, says that a strategic plan is being developed for the treatment of cancer. He said the idea is to provide an integrated approach to cancer treatment and care, and over time establish a centre of excellence, where quality care will be available at an affordable cost. The Health Minister, who was speaking to JIS...

Health Minister, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, has underscored the pivotal role the National Health Fund (NHF) continues to play in the delivery of medical care, particularly in public health institutions. Addressing the staff of the National Public Health Laboratory recently, following a tour of the institution on Slipe Pen Road, Kingston, to view refurbishing and upgrading works being undertaken, Dr....

Minister of Health, Honourable Dr. Fenton Ferguson, says that over half of Jamaica’s deaths are caused by non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and injuries, a situation that is threatening the country’s economic and social development. In explaining the impact of the shift in Jamaica’s morbidity profile, the Health Minister, said these illnesses cost much more to treat, with punishing results for the...

Health Minister, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, has expressed satisfaction with the progress of the modernization of the National Public Health Laboratory and National Blood Transfusion Service, also known as the Blood Bank. Upwards of $21 million has been spent on both institutions, since December 2011, to undertake significant rehabilitation and upgrading works, which is being funded through a $60 million...

Health Minister, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, has underscored the importance of safeguarding the nation’s health to enhance productivity. Speaking at a contract signing ceremony for the development of the Santa Cruz Health Centre in St. Elizabeth, held on Tuesday (January 15) at the Percy Junor Hospital in Spaldings, Clarendon, Dr. Ferguson said the connection between a healthy nation and how...

Minister of State in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Hon. Sharon Ffolkes-Abrahams, is appealing to Jamaicans to support the Rainforest Seafood Festival, noting that the event is in aid of a worthy cause. The festival, slated for Ash Wednesday (February 13) at the Catherine Hall Entertainment Centre in Montego Bay, St. James, is in support of the Cornwall...

Health Minister, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, says public consultations are being considered to determine whether the government will maintain or revise the existing no-user fee policy at public health institutions islandwide. He made the disclosure while addressing the contract signing ceremony for the upgrading of the Santa Cruz Health Centre in St. Elizabeth, held on Tuesday (January 15) at the...

Work to develop the Santa Cruz Health Centre in St. Elizabeth into one of four Centres of Excellence across the island, is to get underway soon, following Tuesday's (January 15) contract signing for phase one of the project. Health Minister, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson; representatives of the National Health Fund (NHF), which is financing the project; the Southern Regional Health...

Ground is to be broken for a children’s hospital in western Jamaica, during fiscal year 2013/14. Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, made the announcement on Tuesday (January 15) adding that plans are already underway for the establishment of the institution, which will be located on the grounds of the Cornwall Regional Hospital in St. James. “It is going...