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KINGSTON — The Ministry of Health is ramping up its campaign to not only have mothers exclusively breastfeed their babies for up to six months, but also to encourage the entire family to support this critical process in the healthy growth and development of the nation’s children. As part of fulfilling the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) mandate to educate and...

KINGSTON — The Ministry of Tourism, through the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo), has launched an extensive public awareness HIV/AIDS campaign in an effort to reduce risky sexual behaviour within the sector. Portfolio Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, said the campaign will not only seek to promote HIV/AIDS awareness within the workplace, but will also aim to eliminate the stigma and...

KINGSTON — The "moods channel website", designed to empower people to live a more positive and fulfilling life, was officially launch on Wednesday September 21, at a ceremony held at the Institute of Jamaica (IOJ), downtown Kingston. The initiative of Research Psychologist and author, Dr. Desmond Green, the website is a motivational vehicle, with insights and core values, which, if...

MONTEGO BAY — The Registrar General's Department (RGD) is appealing to parents to get their children registered so that they can benefit from vital services and also provide data to assist the national planning process. Acting Chief Executive Officer of the RGD, Yvette Scott, noted that not only is birth registration important in giving people an identity and providing proof...

KINGSTON — A number of mothers at the Victoria Jubilee Hospital (VJH) in Kingston received a reminder of the importance of breastfeeding, at the launch of Jamaica’s first breastfeeding education video, by the Ministry of Health and UNICEF at the hospital on Wednesday September 21. In a message from the Minister of Health, Hon. Rudyard Spencer, Chief Medical Officer in...

KINGSTON — Health Minister, Hon. Rudyard Spencer, has welcomed the World Health Organization's (WHO) Declaration, which outlines approaches to be taken in addressing the incidence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) globally. Speaking at the 66th Session of the United Nations General Assembly High Level Meeting on Non-Communicable Diseases in New York on September 19, the Minister noted that, as the first...

KINGSTON — The Registrar General's Department (RGD) is continuing its islandwide birth registration programme with a fair  today (September 16), at the Vision Apostolic Ministries, 38 Job Lane, Spanish Town, St. Catherine. The fair is the second being held in as many days, following one staged at the East Queens Street Baptist Church, Downtown Kingston, on September 15. Some 6,000...

KINGSTON — The long-awaited national blood policy, currently in draft form, should be finalised by the end of the calendar year. The policy is part of a national strategy to ensure access to safe and reliable blood supply and achieve 100 per cent voluntary blood donation. "We are also working on the regulations governing the blood service, which have been...

KINGSTON — Parents or guardians of children born between January 2006 and December 2010, who are without birth certificates, are being urged to take advantage of the series of birth certificate fairs to be hosted by the Registrar General’s Department (RGD) across the island. Some 6,000 children under the age of five from poor communities are to be provided with...

KINGSTON — Health Minister, Hon. Rudyard Spencer, says a multi-sectoral approach must be taken if the country is to effectively tackle the increasing levels of chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs), especially among young people. The Minister noted that studies have shown that people are now developing NCDs at a younger age, taking the epidemic to even greater levels. He argued that...

KINGSTON — Scores of residents of Longville Park and surrounding communities in Clarendon are expected to attend a National Health Festival, to celebrate Caribbean Wellness Day 2011, on Saturday, September 10. The event, organised by the Ministry of Health in partnership with the National Health Fund (NHF), will be staged at the Longville Park Healthy Zone between 10 a.m. and...

KINGSTON — Four hospitals are to be certified by the Ministry of Health (MOH), as a part of its commitment to the Baby- Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI). The facilities are the St. Ann’s Bay and Alexandria Hospitals, St. Ann, May Pen Hospital, Clarendon and the Mandeville Hospital, Manchester. Speaking at a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) Think Tank session on Wednesday...