Westmoreland Health Department Monitoring Emergency Shelters

The Westmoreland Health Department is monitoring emergency shelters across the parish to ensure that proper hygiene and disease-prevention measures are in place during Hurricane Melissa.

“We have visited three shelters so far – Godfrey Stewart High, Unity Primary and Williamsfield Primary,” Health Promotion and Education Officer for Westmoreland, Gerald Miller, told JIS News.

“[We] have focused on safety in terms of prevention of the outbreak of diarrheal diseases because we are in the gastroenteritis season. Coupled with that, you have viruses coming together in settings like those, and the issue of hand washing becomes important. So, we must be stressing that they need to pay attention to hand washing,” he pointed out.

“We’re going through flu season, and [people] need to be covering their mouth,” he added.

Mr. Miller said his team has been engaging with shelter managers to maintain hygiene conditions.

“We have been dialoguing with the shelter managers and reminding them to check the bathroom facilities… Our team, the clinicians, are also checking the facilities, in particular for the ones who have health issues that require monitoring,” he noted.

Beyond disease prevention, Mr. Miller said the team is also providing emotional support to evacuees.

“The main thing that we are focusing on now is trying to help them to cope. We engage them in small discussions about trying to lessen the anxiety as so many persons are being affected by the uncertainty of what’s to come,” he shared.

“You try to talk with them and to be understanding of the situation. Persons are very receptive and very supportive. They understand, some of them have been in shelters before and they are repeat occupants, so they understand what is required of them,” Mr. Miller said.

He told JIS News that the team will continue its visits to ensure that health and safety standards are maintained.

“That’s our role; to ensure that people are taking responsibility, and we have to build their capacity to take responsibility for what is happening within these settings,” Mr. Miller said.