Healthcare Workers Honoured by NERHA

Healthcare workers were honoured by the Northeast Regional Health Authority (NERHA) on Friday (July 8), for their outstanding service in combating the COVID-19 pandemic.

The workers were honoured during the Health Care Workers’ Appreciation Month regional launch, which doubled as an award ceremony, and was held at Jewel Paradise Cove in Runaway Bay, St. Ann.

Workers based in the parishes of St. Ann, St. Mary, and Portland, were lauded for their sacrifices and dedication during the ongoing pandemic.

In her remarks, Minister of State in the Ministry of Health and Wellness, Hon. Juliet Cuthbert- Flynn, stated that the healthcare workers of Jamaica have done an outstanding job in the fight against COVID-19.

“I think of our country, our small island, and how we were managing, and what our health care teams were doing, especially the contact tracing, many countries did not get it right, but I think Jamaica did, I think we did a tremendous job …..it would [have] been a dishonour if we did not take the time out to say thank to our health care workers,” she stated.

She added that over the last two years of the pandemic, the nation witnessed an extraordinary show of “commitment, service, and sacrifice as healthcare professionals in all categories rose above their own personal troubles and shouldered the nation through its time of vulnerability”.

“We know what selflessness is, because it has and continues to shine through our healthcare workers,” Mrs Cuthbert- Flynn stated.

The State Minister noted that it is with this in mind, that the Government’s 10-year strategic plan for the health sector prioritises human capital development.

“You are our greatest assets in public health, we know that no achievement or transformation of the health sector can be complete without you. To this end, the Ministry of Health and Wellness has embarked on an expansive plan to build a more resilient health infrastructure. Through significant investment under the Health System Strengthening Programme, Jamaicans will see extensive rehabilitative work and digitization across the health system,” she outlined.

She noted that the works will impact facilities in the northeast region such as the St. Ann’s Bay Regional Hospital, the St. Ann’s Bay Health Centre, and the Brown’s Town Health Centre.

“The upgrading and building out of these health centres are to enhance your working environment and [to ensure that] you are better equipped to carry out your functions and also meet the needs of the patients,” she said.

Mrs. Cuthbert- Flynn also extended her sympathies to “the colleagues, friends [and] loved ones of healthcare workers who are no longer with us because of COVID-19. Neither words nor acts [stop] the pain that you are feeling. We mourn with you and extend words of comfort to the families and will continue to do so”.

Meanwhile, Regional Director at NERHA, Fabia Lamm, in her remarks, stated that the commemoration of July as Healthcare Workers’ Appreciation Month “is indeed a significant recognition of the work and worth of our [over] 2700 healthcare heroes who have worked tirelessly to serve diligently over the years and more significantly over the last two years in managing the COVID-19 global pandemic”.

She noted that as of June 2022, the region has had a total of 17,212 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 631 deaths.

Ms. Lamm added that between March 10, 2021, and June 30, 2022, some 184,181 COVID-19 vaccines were administered in the northeast region with 98,796 in St. Ann, 52,733 in St. Mary and 32,652 in Portland.

Among the activities to be staged across the island during Healthcare Workers’ Appreciation Month are more award ceremonies for staff members, sport, entertainment and beach events, and other activities.