Tobago health workers improve communication at workshop

THA Secretary of Health Dr Faith BYisrael said the ability of healthcare professionals to get their messages to resonate with the public would determine the overall health of the population.

On August 26, the Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) hosted a three-day workshop at the Tobago Information Technology Ltd Conference Room in Signal Hill, aimed at enhancing the island’s capacity in the surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases. The workshop is expected to provide the professionals with the knowledge and skills to communicate effectively during a public health crisis.

In her feature address, Dr BYisrael said if diseases are not detected by the health systems quickly, a losing battle would be fought.

She said the covid19 pandemic has taught many things. She said one cannot underestimate the power of a few people “who don’t know what they’re talking about, but who have a loudspeaker...

“And because of those people, we had to go through an entire couple years of covid19 where we had to battle with the competing messages."

She said people who were fully vaccinated for various diseases were suddenly apprehensive to do so.

She said they had to challenge naysayers about their medical expertise.

"We had to say. 'No, if you put a rechargeable bulb on your hand it will not light, because the vaccine is not the thing that’s lighting the bulb.'”

She said healthcare professionals had to rethink how their delivered their messages to reach the population.

BYisrael said she has already seen the concerns by the World Health Organization about monkey pox being a public health concern. She said how the message is phrased is important.

“I am happy that we’re actually doing this training, I am happy that we’re talking about crisis communication. I am also happy that we are doing the back-end work as well because in many instances if we do not hear of the diseases quickly enough, we then are fighting a losing battle.”

Manager of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) at the Ministry of Health, Grace Sookchand, said the challenges faced in the surveillance of vaccine preventable diseases are not unique to TT. Sookchand said the ability to leverage the resources to address these challenges would determine the country’s success in strengthening the surveillance systems, safeguarding the gains and preventing the re-emergence of vaccine-preventable diseases.

“Over the next three days, we’re gathered in recognition of the critical role healthcare workers play in protecting the health of our population. Despite resource constraints, our focus remains on empowering you – our front-line providers – with the knowledge and tools needed to excel in your roles.

"We will collaboratively work to enhance our understanding of surveillance best practice with the experts from the CDC, share experiences and develop strategies to optimise our limited resources.”

She said the goal is to equip the providers with the necessary skills to effectively manage and respond to health crisis related to all vaccine-preventable diseases.