Trinidad and Tobago’s first aquatic vet wins regional award

THIS country’s first and only aquatic veterinarian, Dr Ayanna Phillips Savage, has received a regional award for her professional contributions.

She said she was honoured and that it was as a result of “years of dedicated, unwavering hard work in a still little recognised field in our region.”

She is a lecturer in marine mammal medicine/aquatic animal health and co-ordinator of the aqua health/aquatic animal health unit and the aquatic animal health diagnostic laboratory at the School of Veterinary Medicine at UWI, St Augustine.

She recently received the Anthony N Sabga Caribbean Excellence Award for science and technology.

In a release, UWI said in her senior year at the institution, she presented an aquatic animal-based research project which earned the highest score in that year group.

But despite this, it said, it was “met with some scepticism as the field of aquatic animal medicine was not yet recognised across the Caribbean."

Now, however, “aquatic animal medicine is well recognised globally, having been introduced to the curricula of several of the top veterinary programmes in North America and Europe.

“The aquatic animal medicine unit seeks to sensitise and educate the Caribbean region about the importance of the health, management and conservation of aquatic ecosystems, and the impact of aquatic ecosystem health on human health.”

The unit has ongoing studies in the areas of diseases of marine and freshwater fish and shellfish, sea turtles and marine mammals and the potential impact of these on public health.

The release said, “Her dedication continues with her work in the rehabilitation of endangered and protected sea turtles.

“Dr Savage is responsible for the work of the TT Marine Mammal Stranding Network, a network of 100-plus volunteers from many varying professional spheres who work together to respond to marine mammal stranding when they occur in TT…(She) described some of her current work as being focused on identifying, documenting and educating on diseases of economic and public health significance in aquatic species across TT.”

Savage said receiving the award was a “tremendous honour” for which she is “immensely grateful.”

The school’s director, Dr Karla Georges, believes the award shows there is a “wealth of talent” at the school and the work it does is relevant and has an impact.

“Our school, though very small, is making a giant contribution to the region, and this recognition by our Caribbean peers is an immense booster for the morale of the school, staff and students, faculty and the UWI family.”

The release said Savage promotes and advocates for her field’s inclusion by means of regulatory guidelines in the local aquaculture business.

It said she intends to continue “promoting aquatic diseases that have economic and/or public health implications in an attempt to safeguard the livelihoods of those who interact with the aquatic ecosystems and championing the cause of Caribbean aquatic ecosystem conservation so that our protected and endangered aquatic wildlife are preserved for generations to come.”