Brebnor calls for HIV prevention medication in Trinidad and Tobago

THA Health Secretary Dr Faith Brebnor says the time has come for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to be included in Trinidad and Tobago’s HIV/Aids prevention protocols.

She made the comment while responding to questions at a UNICEF event at the Parliament on November 20 about the rising rate of syphilis among pregnant women and concerns that other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) may also be increasing.

Dr Adesh Sirjusingh, director of women’s health at the Ministry of Health, revealed the alarming data during a Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) handing-over ceremony for telehealth kits and computers on November 18.

Sirjusingh said close to 200 cases of syphilis have been reported in pregnant women in 2025, up from the usual figure of 30 to 40 per year. Last year, there were more than 100 cases.

Brebnor said she welcomed the national attention now being placed on syphilis and other STIs, noting it is an issue she has been raising for some time.

TT is among the few countries in the western hemisphere where PrEP is not available on the open market or through state-sponsored HIV prevention programmes.

“PrEP is something that is used throughout the world because we need it. It's very much like any other type of prevention is better than cure methodologies. Trinidad and Tobago definitely needs to get with PrEP,” she said.

In 2019, then health minister Terrence Deyalsingh said government would not introduce PrEP as subsidised HIV prevention medication, arguing it could encourage risky behaviour.

Asked whether the Tobago House of Assembly (THA), which has responsibility for health policy on the island, could independently implement PrEP, Brebnor said yes but added she wants to discuss the matter with Health Minister Dr Lackram Bodoe.

“So the issue with Tobago doing it on our end is the availability of the medication and the method by which the medication is acquired,” she said.

“There is no law that says we can't use PrEP. As long as there's no actual law that says it, it means that we can do what we need to do in Tobago to protect our people. But we would definitely want to ensure that when we get the medication, we procure it in a way that is the cheapest for all of us and doing it together is the only way to do that versus trying to do it on our own.”

Brebnor said education remains central to efforts to prevent new infections.

The THA has been rolling out a campaign focused on informing citizens, particularly young people, about sexual health and prevention.

“We need to ensure that we are healthy and health means all aspects of our health. Our sexual health is equally important and we can't forget that. Same way mental health is important, same way we treat with non-communicable diseases, we have to reframe how we think about our sexual health and look at it holistically and let's just do the work,” she said.