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Dental nurse attached to the Clarendon Health Department, Sonia Walker, is appealing to Jamaicans to practise proper oral hygiene, as dental problems often lead to other health complications. In an interview with JIS News, Miss Walker explained that while good oral hygiene generally results in healthy teeth and a beautiful smile, it also helps to preserve the health of the...

Q: Has there been any detection of the Influenza A (H1N1) virus in Jamaica? No, the virus has not been detected in Jamaica. Q: How likely is it that the virus will be in Jamaica? A: Although there have been no reported cases in Jamaica thus far, given the porosity of our borders and the unrestricted movement of people and...

Director, Emergency Disaster Management and Special Services at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Marion Bullock-Ducasse, is urging Jamaicans, or non-nationals in the island, who have travelled to locations affected by the Influenza A (H1N1) virus within the last two weeks, to immediately contact their health care providers, the public health departments in their parishes or the Ministry of Health. She...

Scores of senior citizens of Clarendon recently benefitted from free medical checks, counselling, and hair and beauty services, at a health fair held at the Dorritt Bent Church Hall in Spaldings. The fair, a collaborative effort of the National Council for Senior Citizens (NCSC), the Clarendon Health Department, and the Spaldings United Church, sought to address some of the medical...

There have still not been any confirmed cases of the Influenza A (H1N1) virus detected in Jamaica. According to information provided by the Ministry of Health, technical teams have been undertaking increased monitoring and surveillance, and have tested several person, all of which have so far come back negative. The Ministry of Health remains on high alert and has been...

In light of the current outbreak of the Swine Influenza worldwide, Minister of Health and Environment, Hon. Rudyard Spencer, has announced that an additional supply of 1,000 doses of antiviral medication used to combat the 'Flu', will arrive in the island within two weeks. This supply will be in addition to 450 doses of the anti-virals that the Ministry currently...

Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Audley Shaw, will be meeting with nurses at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow to discuss issues relating to their job reclassification exercise. Addressing today's (April 29) post-Cabinet press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister, Minister said that he, along with the Minister of Health and Environment, Rudyard Spencer; former Minister without Portfolio in...

A total of 300 young people are to benefit from six-months of work experience in health-related fields under the National Youth Services (NYS) health corps programme. A 28-day residential camp was held at the Knox Community College's Cobbla Campus in Manchester from late March to mid-April, where the youngsters, who are high school graduates age 17 to 24 years, received...

Minister of Health, Hon. Rudyard Spencer, has said that the current Swine Influenza epidemic has serious implications for the Jamaican economy and, in response the country has been placed on "high alert". He said that, the Ministry has "scaled-up" surveillance activities at health care facilities and ports of entry, health sector workers have been alerted to ensure early detection and...

The Ministry of Health has activated its emergency operations to coordinate the country's response to the recent outbreak of Swine Influenza in Mexico, which has since spread to the United States, Canada and parts of Europe. Speaking with JIS News, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Sheila Campbell-Forrester, assured the nation that the Ministry has been...

As it seeks to increase awareness of the importance of immunization, the Manchester Health Department launched Immunization Week on April 24. The launch involved a march through the town of Mandeville, and a brief ceremony held at the Mandeville Park. Senior Public Health Nurse for the parish, Dalcie Stevenson, told JIS News that the event was to ensure that parents...

What is swine influenza?Swine influenza, or "swine flu", is a highly contagious acute respiratory disease of pigs, caused by one of several swine influenza A viruses. Morbidity tends to be high and mortality low (1-4%). The virus is spread among pigs by aerosols, direct and indirect contact, and asymptomatic carrier pigs. Outbreaks in pigs occur year round, with an increased...