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CO is a silent killer, Sandals Resorts taking no chances and putting detectors in rooms of all hotels

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By Deandrea Hamilton

Editor

 

#TurksandCaicos, June 6, 2022 – All of the rooms at Beaches Resort Turks and Caicos will be outfitted with carbon monoxide detectors; a move announced by Sandals Resorts International, SRI, last week on the heels of news reports that the three Americans who died at the Sandals Emerald Bay property in Exuma, The Bahamas were poisoned by Carbon monoxide; an odorless, colourless gas.

There are 16 resorts under the Sandals and Beaches brand across the Caribbean.

While the all-inclusive hotel company denies that the report is official, that it was an isolated incident, and as the families of the victims await a private autopsy report, Sandals Resorts international  is still responding to the incredibly heartbreaking tragedy with a somber message and the installation of detectors in all rooms in all of its Sandals and Beaches hotels throughout the region

Perhaps SRI, amidst this calamity is onto something life-saving and which can be adopted by other resort and villa rental properties, given the devastating possible outcomes.

The US CDC has filed that every year, at least 430 people die in the U.S. from accidental CO poisoning.  Approximately 50,000 people in the U.S. visit the emergency department each year due to accidental CO poisoning.

The report advised that red blood cells pick up CO quicker than they pick up oxygen. That when you inhale CO, your body replaces the oxygen in blood with CO and that people who are sleeping or who have been drinking alcohol can die from CO poisoning before ever having symptoms.

The deaths are so traumatic that research revealed at least 14 US states make having the detectors mandatory, especially in new hotel constructions.  Among those states were tourism magnets like California, Florida, New Jersey, New York and North Carolina.

James McAnaly, general manager of Beaches Turks and Caicos confirmed that the new SRI policy includes Beaches Resorts Villages and Spa in Providenciales and its 758 guest suites.

Health

Misconduct for Medical Professionals laid out by TCIG in new amendment

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Dana Malcolm 

Staff Writer 

 

#TurksandCaicos, September 29, 2023 – A suite of actions that constitute misconduct for medical professionals in the Turks and Caicos has been laid out by the Government, along with a process outlined for recourse for residents who think they have been wronged via proposed amendments to the Health Professions Ordinance.

Section VIII of the ordinance which dealt with disciplinary actions has been repealed and replaced; included in that replacement is a list of 12 actions that will land medical professionals in hot water.

Drinking on the job, abandoning patients, faking certificates for vaccines and even sharing profits are actions that TCIG is warning against. The full list outlines the misconduct of a health professional as:

  • If he personally abuses or misuses alcohol or other substances such that it affects or impairs the performance of his duties, or during the performance of his duties;
  • If he abuses or misuses his position as a health professional;
  • If he conducts himself in an indecent or violent behavior;
  • For misconduct in research endeavors;
  • If he willfully betrays a professional confidence;
  • If he abandons a patient in danger without sufficient cause, and without giving him an opportunity to retain the services of another health professional;
  • Knowingly gives a false certificate respecting birth, death, notice of disease, state of health, vaccination or disinfection or respecting any matter relating to life, health, or accident insurance;
  • Divides with another person, who is not a partner, any fees or profits resulting from consultations or surgical operations, without the patient’s knowledge and consent;
  • Impersonates another health professional;
  • Employs in connection with his professional practice an assistant who is not registered or licensed under this Ordinance, or permits a person who is not registered or licensed under this Ordinance to attend or treat patients
  • Directly or indirectly holds himself out to the public as a specialist or as being specially qualified in any particular branch of medicine and who has not taken a special course in such branch and received a certificate of specialty therein which is recognized by a council;
  • Does or fails to do any act or thing, the doing of which or the failure to do which a council considers to be unprofessional or discreditable

If a resident alleges malpractice or makes a complaint against a medical health professional, the proposed amendments now require that person to provide in writing an affidavit detailing the alleged offense and his reasons for believing it true.

The authorities then have to decide whether the complaint is genuine and then proceed to censure, reprimand the health professional, suspend their license, or strike them from the register of licensed registered health professionals via hearing.

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News

Youth Organizations get Big Prizes at inaugural National Youth Awards

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Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

 

 

#TurksandCaicos, September 29, 2023 – When the National Youth Awards were held on Wednesday, September 27, 2023, a number of organizations that have long been making outstanding contributions to youth development were bestowed with first-time national awards; the Turks and Caicos Islands Government honouring their contributions to the country.

The Saint Monica’s Christian Youth Movement, Rotaract Club, Edward C. Gartland Youth Centre, and Pine Cay Project were all awarded. 

The awards were presented during the first annual National Youth Awards on September 27th as the country celebrated Youth Week.

The Saint Monica’s Christian Youth Movement was highlighted for being Outstanding In Community Spirit And Building Relationships.

The Rotaract Club was awarded for being Outstanding In Community Projects.

The Edward C. Gartland Youth Centre for being Outstanding In Community Impact Through Volunteer Services.

Finally, the Pine Cay Project was recognized for its Outstanding Corporate Contributions.

The organizations were awarded along with a group of young people who have recorded significant achievements across education, entrepreneurship, sports, and more.

The National Youth Awards were held at the ballroom of Beaches Turks and Caicos.

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Caribbean News

Jamaica declares DENGUE OUTBREAK; control measures amped up

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Rashaed Esson

Staff Writer

 

#Jamaica, September 29, 2023 – As Jamaica battles a dengue outbreak, the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development is taking steps to fortify the country’s resilience to the mosquito borne disease.

The Department announced it will be providing funds for the emergency response to contain the dengue outbreak, according to Desmond McKenzie, Minister of Local Government, as reported by JIS.

McKenzie was in talks with Journalists at the Spanish Court Hotel in Kingston this past Wednesday, September 27th when he revealed that the resources will come from the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA).

In fact, work, he expressed, is already being done as he informed that discussions have started with Jamaica’s Minister of Health and Wellness to see to the roll out of clean-up programmes to ensure communities do not morph into breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

It was reported that: “International health authorities have reported elevated dengue fever activity across multiple areas in Jamaica, with more than 560 suspected cases (78 confirmed) reported Jan. 1-Sept. 22. This is compared to the 59 cases reported over a similar period in 2022. Majority of the confirmed cases were reported in Kingston, Saint Andrew, Saint Catherine, and Saint Thomas.  The Jamaican Ministry of Health & Wellness has deployed vector control workers across the island to high-risk communities.  This report represents the most complete data available as of Sept. 29.”

These clean up initiatives, the minister points out, will be in operation in the days to come and they will commence in areas identified by the Ministry of Health; the plan is to later extend the efforts other communities.

In continuation, Audley Gordon, Executive Director of the NSWMA, spoke of vulnerable areas which he termed the “problematic sites”, informing that they are scheduled for action, including the removal of bulky waste by his teams, adding that the “NSWMA is fully ready to play its part in what we are asked to do, starting this weekend”.

Not only will the programmes clean the respective areas, they will call community members to practice proper garbage disposal, as people often fail to acknowledge the importance of these hygienic habits.

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