Ministry of Health representatives attended the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) 26th Executive Board Meeting in Belize

#TurksandCaicos, April 17, 2023 – Honourable Shaun Malcolm, Minister of Health and Human Services accompanied by Permanent Secretary Health, Mrs. Desiree Lewis, and Executive Administrator (Ag) Mrs. Garde Jones, attended the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) 26th Executive Board Meeting- March 15, 2023 – Placencia, Belize.

The meeting welcomed several top health authorities, including Caribbean Ministers of Health and other high-level delegates to discuss CARPHA’s health priorities, review progress and solutions to ongoing problems, and exploring opportunities to advance universal health care with equity in the region of the Americas.

The objectives of the meeting were:

• To receive administrative and technical updates regarding the operations of the CARPHA;
• To review and approve policy initiatives undertaken by the CARPHA; and
• To provide advice to support the smooth management of CARPHA.

The agenda included:

• Review of Performance of Annual Work Plan 2022
• Corporate services update

• Financial update

• Corporate initiatives (Roll-back Malaria (RBM) and Enterprise Risk Management (ERM))

• Status of current evaluation of CARPHA

• Surveillance Disease Prevention & Control (SDPC)Technical update

• Status of COVID-19 and other health security concerns

• Technical update of other SDPC work, including progress with the Integrated Surveillance

Strategy (ISS)

• Update on Routine Immunization support to CARPHA Member States (CMS)
• The Pandemic Fund
• CARPHA’s application to Pandemic Fund
• Research Study – potential resurgence in the Caribbean
• Status of Headquarters Agreements

The 26th Meeting of the Executive Board of the CARPHA was convened to:

• Support the creation of a Regional Rapid Response/Deployment network, under the umbrella of the Caribbean Regional Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program (CR-FELTP), as a key intervention contributing towards regional health security.
• Advocate and Support Health Information, Communicable Disease surveillance and Emergency Response (HCE) in equipping Member States with the tools and knowledge to strengthen surveillance systems, respond to and prepare for health emergencies, and provide evidence for use in disease prevention and effective policy making, with specific focus on the primary data source level, such as at the health centers, hospitals and environmental offices.
• Strengthen the Caribbean Regulatory System to support access to quality assured medicines and vaccines, their appropriate use, and the monitoring of their safety and quality.
• Support the expansion of Medicines Quality Control and Surveillance Department’s (MQCSD) risk-based post market surveillance programme for medicine testing to assure the quality of medicines used in the region.
• Encourage the adoption of CARPHA’s guidelines for strengthened arboviral disease surveillance efforts in CMS inclusive of greater indices of suspicion, wider testing of suspected cases and adequate responses including integrated vector management strategies; and
• Support Chronic Disease and Injury (CDI) efforts to create enabling environments in CARPHA Member States to reduce the burden of non-communicable diseases through the Caribbean Moves initiatives.
• Advocate for resources to enable increased testing of respiratory and environmental samples at CARPHA Medical Microbiology Laboratory (CMML) and Environmental Health and Sustainable Development (EHSD) respectively.
• Promote partnerships with public and private tourism stakeholders including the cruise sector for implementing Tourism and Health Program (THP) to improve healthy and safe tourism.
• Advocate and provide support for resources for continued implementation of CARPHA’s comprehensive package of public health work to improve health in the region.

The Minister commenting on his first attendance to the CARPHA Board meeting, advised that it was very informative and provided an opportunity for him to obtain a better understanding, and clearer picture of CARPHA (Who they are and What they do).

He further noted that continued collaboration with CARPHA is critical to the Ministry’s ongoing efforts to improve health outcomes within our beloved Turks and Caicos Islands.