THERE was a total of 450 cases of dengue fever reported in this country last year. This finding is contained in the first report of the Government Ministries joint select committee (JSC) which was laid in the Senate on Tuesday.
The report also said over the last 20 years, there has been an increase in the number of peak periods of dengue due to environmental conditioning and climate change. The report added that this pattern has occurred throughout the Caribbean, Central and South America.
The JSC noted that while the Health Ministry has developed several effective systems and programmes to deal with vector-borne diseases such as dengue, there were a few shortcomings.
These shortcomings included the “limited use of the media by the ministry outside of the peak dengue periods”; the non-implementation of a water barrel project in Trinidad while this project was successfully done in Tobago and “some deficiencies in the competence of the personnel charged with the first stage diagnosis of dengue fever.”
Among the recommendations made by the JSC for the Health Ministry to improve its ability to deal with dengue were a sustained public education campaign throughout the year; implementation of a water barrel replacement programme in Trinidad and working with the Local Government Ministry to find a solution to the health risks presented by vacant and abandoned private lots within municipalities.
Independent Senator Corinne Baptiste-McKnight is the chairperson of this JSC. Other members include Energy Minister Carolyn Seepersad-Bachan, Diego Martin Central MP Dr Amery Browne and Opposition Senator Faris Al-Rawi.
