The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) through the Ministry of Health and Human Services conducted an Expanded Program on Immunization in Providenciales, Turks and Caicos (TCI), March 30-31, 2023.
The team which visited the TCI included the PAHO Sub-Regional Adviser on Immunization, Dr. Karen Broome-Troppin and Dr. Blair Woodside from thePAHO/WHO office for the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands.
The week began with courtesy call and introductory meetings with the Honourable Minister of Health, Deputy Permanent Secretary, and the Primary Health Care Manager, who also holds the responsibility for the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI). The team visited clinics on the island of Providenciales for a brief EPI assessment. The visit concluded with a two-day training session with health care professionals from across the Turks and Caicos Islands.
Commenting on the assessment and the training, Ms. Alrisa Gardiner, Primary Health Care Manager with responsibility for the national immunization program stated, “The TCI is home to many visitors annually and a highly mobile population and because of this, we are at an increased risk of importation of vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs) that we have not seen for many years.
This visit by PAHO was truly beneficial to the TCI; not only because it provided the opportunity for the country’s program to be assessed, but also for local professionals involved with immunization, to benefit from training on existing and updated information. It served as a refresher for some, and for others, this would have been their first exposure to a training of this nature.
It is my hope that this visit will awaken practices in us that have lain dormant so that together we can boost immunization coverage, mitigate VPDs and regain lost achievements for the TCI in this regard. I wish to thank PAHO/WHO for their support with this training. We do look forward to more trainings of this nature in country”.
Dr. Karen Broome-Troppin in her comments said “PAHO is committed to supporting countries in the Americas to strengthen their National Immunization Programs. The visit to the Turks and Caicos is to support the sustainability of elimination of vaccine preventable diseases such as measles, rubella, and polio.
The COVID19 pandemic has resulted in the reversal of gains made in childhood immunization in many countries leading to a population of children susceptible to diseases that were eliminated from the Caribbean Sub-region.
The training of healthcare providers in the TCI on the expanded program on immunization should reinforce the principles of immunization and vaccine disease surveillance leading to an improved performance of the National Immunization Program and hence sustain the elimination of vaccine preventable diseases on the islands”.
The Minister of Health and Human Services - Honourable Shaun D. Malcolm, expressed his profound thanks and appreciation for such a timely visit and workshop. He stated that the National Immunization Program is one of the programs within the Ministry of Health which garners much focus, and reaffirmed his support to ensure the success of the program.
In his comments, he also encouraged the Primary Health Care Manager to continue to advocate to parents and guardians, and all residents to have their children immunized in a timely manner.
Childhood vaccines are offered free of costs to all residents of the Turks and Caicos Islands at all government operated clinics. Vaccines are safe and effective, and parents and caretakers are encouraged to visit the clinic in your community to check your child’s vaccination status.
Help us to keep the TCI, VPD free!