- ContributedPAHO representative in Jamaica, Dr. Manuel Peña.
Patricia Watson, Senior Staff Reporter
Over the next three months, The Gleaner will be focusing on a number of major health issues to coincide with the Pan American Health Organisa-tion's (PAHO) centennial celebrations. The articles will attempt to raise public awareness of these issues as well as highlight developments in health over the years. They will also offer recommendations to ensure that Jamaicans live healthy lifestyles to protect the future.
THE scourge of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and lifestyle diseases which are taking the lives of Jamaicans are among the biggest headaches of the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO).
The regional health organisation is concerned about the situation here.
PAHO has battled and triumphed over numerous diseases since it came into existence. However, in this its 100th year, the current HIV/AIDS epidemic poses one of the greatest challenges to date, not only in Jamaica, but also across the region.
Calling it the "most horrible epidemic of our time", PAHO representative, Dr. Manuel Peña said there is urgent need for a change in sexual practices.
"If we are going to treat those people suffering from HIV, the amount of medication they would need, hospital care, intensive care, every day for a long time, there is no country, no public health department that would be able to afford it," he explained.
He said based on the magnitude of the problem, PAHO has been working with the Ministry of Health and other agencies here to improve their capacity to deal with the disease.
"That's why we have made health promotion our main focus. The health promotion strategy involves healthy policies, empowerment and the creation of supportive environments."
Dr. Peña explained that the challenges facing Jamaica today as it pertains to HIV is getting people to change their behaviours.
"We have been working mainly in the area of prevention, however, the amount and implication of this epidemic has to move the whole society towards care and the human face of people living with HIV. And this is something that has a wide variety of reaction in our society - we need to have an open approach and we need to develop the health systems to deal with comprehensive care," he said.
But although HIV is a priority for PAHO, the other major area of concern is that of lifestyle or non-communicable diseases.
"This is a very critical area of co-operation in Jamaica," Dr. Peña noted. He explained that since 1945 in Jamaica, there has been a change in the leading causes of death from infectious diseases to a predominance of lifestyle-related illnesses.
"It has to do with the nutrition and quality of the foods we eat, the physical activities that people have and a deterioration of mental health."
Thus, diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, coronary diseases, strokes and in some cases cancer have been responsible for most deaths in Jamaica.
One institution, funded by PAHO, which has contributed immensely to solving nutrition related illnesses as those mentioned above, is the Caribbean Food and Nutrition Institute (CFNI). Research on numerous issues are carried out at the institute and specific activities geared at promoting healthy lifestyles are also done. Some of these activities include:
Developing regional and national dietary guidelines
Promoting healthy lifestyles in institutions and communities
Producing nutrition-related publications
Producing radio and television programmes on nutrition
Organising competitions and awards for best practices in nutrition.
Enett Noble, librarian at CFNI, explained that the only aspect of nutrition that CFNI is not involved in is the actual preparation of the dishes.
PAHO was founded in December 1902 during the International Sanitary Convention held in Washington, D.C. United States. The major health concerns of the time were yellow fever and other infectious diseases. Since 1902, PAHO has played a pivotal role in improving health conditions in the Americas. This year marks 40 years of collaboration with the Jamaican Ministry of Health and other agencies, and today it boasts a long list of achievements.
Dr. Peña noted that since the organisation has been in Jamaica, smallpox has been eradicated and with it, other diseases that were of significant public health concern, such as yaws, yellow fever, plague, poliomyelitis, malaria, rabies and measles are almost eliminated.
Small-pox
At a recent press conference, Dr. Peña said that the last case of smallpox in the Americas was reported in Brazil in April 1971 and that "the last child diagnosed who suffered 'wild' virus poliomyelitis was diagnosed in Peru in August 1991".
He also pointed to reductions in such diseases as typhoid fever, Hansen's disease, gastroenteritis and other infectious diseases in Jamaica.
"We have a very good programme in prevention and control of diseases," Dr. Peña said.
As such, the organisation has supported Jamaica's immunisation programme, which has seen more than 90 per cent of Jamaica's children immune to eight preventable diseases. In addition, PAHO has supported the Ministry of Health's drive to provide safe blood, especially at this time.
As the organisation celebrates its 100th anniversary, Dr. Peña explained that he is happy about the achievements, but much work still needs to be done to protect the gains made and to make significant headway in preventing diseases such as HIV and other lifestyle diseases.
