Minister Mckenzie Pledges Upgrades to Clarendon Drop-In Centre

Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, has pledged to address concerns at the Clarendon Drop-in Centre to ensure that the facility adequately meets the needs of the parish’s homeless population.

He gave this undertaking while delivering remarks during the Clarendon Municipal Corporation’s observance of World Homeless Day on October 10, at the Old Police Station grounds in May Pen, Clarendon.

Mr. McKenzie shared that, in discussions with employees of the Corporation, he was apprised of “concerns about the drop-in centre here in Clarendon, and the fact that the facilities are not fully functional to meet the needs”.

He noted, for instance, that individuals with mental health challenges, though treated, often return to the streets due to the absence of adequate overnight accommodation.

“I gave a commitment that whatever steps have to be taken to ensure that we activate the facility for persons who want to sleep overnight, that we put the necessary things in place to get it done,” the Minister assured.

Meanwhile, Mr. McKenzie reiterated the Government’s commitment to addressing mental health concerns among the homeless.

“We are carrying out training on a daily basis to equip the workers in our infirmaries, in our drop-in facilities, training them in a way that they are able to respond to the challenges that exist,” he indicated.

Mr. McKenzie further noted that the Local Government Ministry continues to implement measures to address mental health challenges across all its facilities.

“We in local government, in the last year, have trained some 38 psychiatric nursing aides that are deployed right across Jamaica in every infirmary and golden age home, to work to assist those who have that level of problems,” he stated.

Minister McKenzie advised that in the new fiscal year, government will train 38 additional psychiatric nursing aides.

“Once they are trained, we’ll be putting them in the system to strengthen the team that we have,” he added.

World Homeless Day was observed under the theme ‘Bridging Gaps in Homelessness: Connecting Persons to Services and Community through Data Collection’.