Carib Scope

分类： health

  • Eastern Caribbean labs link up for faster outbreak response

    Eastern Caribbean labs link up for faster outbreak response

    A regional initiative to boost infectious disease monitoring, early outbreak detection and rapid public health response across the Eastern Caribbean is now underway, after the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) concluded a targeted stakeholder consultation focused on building tier-based compliant laboratory networks. The multi-day gathering, hosted at Saint Lucia’s Harbour Club Hotel, brought together a diverse cohort of laboratory specialists, public health practitioners, sub-regional reference laboratory leaders and global health partner representatives from across the island bloc.

    The core goal of the consultation was to align regional stakeholders on the infrastructure, policy and operational requirements for building a tier-based laboratory network that meets the binding standards of the International Health Regulations (IHR) and aligns with global universal health coverage (UHC) goals. Unlike a centralized model, a tier-based system connects diagnostic facilities across multiple levels of care: from community-based testing sites at local polyclinics, to national reference laboratories, up to specialized regional reference centers. This interconnected structure is designed to cut wait times for diagnostic results, expand equitable access to testing, and deliver more consistent, reliable data to trigger faster outbreak responses.

    Vishwanath Partapsingh, PAHO’s advisor for health systems and services, outlined the dual core objectives of the regional consultation in opening remarks. “First, we wanted to open a collaborative dialogue with member states to build shared understanding of the core principles of tier-based laboratory networks, outline the tangible benefits these systems deliver, map existing national laboratory capacity across the region, and outline actionable next steps for each country to advance their own systems,” Partapsingh explained. “Second, we aimed to assess current progress countries have already made toward aligning their laboratory infrastructure with IHR requirements, and create space for cross-national experience sharing. Countries across the Eastern Caribbean are at different stages of developing these networks, so there is tremendous value in allowing nations to learn from one another’s successes and challenges.”

    For host nation Saint Lucia, the timing of the consultation proved particularly opportune, according to Dr. Glensford Joseph, the country’s Medical Officer of Health. Joseph noted that the gathering created a critical space for collaboration with other member states of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) to strengthen regional and national laboratory services collectively.

    “This consultation gives us a unique opportunity to conduct a full review of our current national laboratory framework, identify unaddressed gaps and challenges, and lay the groundwork to build a far more robust diagnostic system that serves communities across every level of care,” Joseph said. “Right now, we are preparing to expand routine laboratory services out to the community level, particularly in our island’s polyclinics, so this guidance could not have come at a better time as we shift to a tier-based approach.”

    Joseph added that Saint Lucia’s Ministry of Health prioritizes this regional collaboration because it helps national policymakers refine existing frameworks and actionable roadmaps to strengthen laboratory systems, work that directly advances both UHC goals and national outbreak preparedness efforts.

    “A strong, tiered laboratory network enables the decentralization of diagnostic services, meaning community members can access the testing they need close to home, which is a critical pillar of rolling out our national universal health coverage package,” Joseph emphasized. “Beyond improving access to routine care, strengthening this network is also central to boosting our national disease surveillance capacity. Laboratory diagnosis is the foundation of confirming outbreak-causing pathogens, enabling faster clinical management for patients and allowing public health teams to bring outbreaks under control far more quickly.”

    Looking ahead, PAHO expects that the outcomes of this consultation will drive measurable progress in rolling out tier-based laboratory systems across multiple Eastern Caribbean nations, including Saint Lucia, Grenada, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, ultimately improving health outcomes and security for communities across the sub-region.

  • Cuba resumes production of cytostatic drugs

    Cuba resumes production of cytostatic drugs

    Against a backdrop of crippling economic constraints and a steadily tightening U.S. economic, commercial, and financial blockade, Cuba has marked a major milestone in protecting public health: the full restart of production at the AICA Laboratories cytostatic drug facility, following a targeted expansion investment designed to boost domestic output of critical cancer treatments.

    The reopening event, held on June 5, 2026, brought together senior leaders from Cuba’s biopharmaceutical sector and public health system, including BioCubaFarma president Mayda Mauri Pérez, who hosted Minister of Public Health José Angel Portal Miranda during an official tour of the upgraded facility. The visit underscored the close cross-sector collaboration between the national biopharmaceutical industry, the Ministry of Public Health (Minsap), and the Cuban government – a partnership that officials say was instrumental to completing the expansion and restart despite the country’s ongoing external pressures.

    Per an official update shared to BioCubaFarma’s Facebook page, the production restart is being carried out as a gradual, carefully monitored process. Each stage of manufacturing will be brought online incrementally, a deliberate approach chosen to guarantee consistent technological stability and adherence to Cuba’s strict quality standards for pharmaceutical products.

    Following the expansion, the upgraded plant is now positioned to supply 16 different cytostatic (cancer-fighting) medications to Cuba’s National Program for the Care of Cancer Patients. Production scheduling has been structured to prioritize the drugs classified as most clinically critical, aligned with needs assessments coordinated directly with Minsap.

    Speaking during the reopening ceremony, Portal Miranda emphasized that even amid widespread economic limitations, the facility’s return to operation represents a critical step forward in securing consistent access to life-saving cancer treatments for the Cuban people. Mayda Mauri Pérez echoed this sentiment, noting that the intersectoral alliance between the biopharmaceutical and public health sectors has emerged as an essential bulwark protecting drug access for Cubans, even as the U.S. blockade has intensified in recent years.

    The event also included participation from practicing Cuban oncologists, who held working discussions with facility leadership to align production priorities with real-time clinical needs on the ground. This direct input ensures that output from the plant will directly address the most pressing care demands facing patients across the country.

    Far from being an isolated infrastructure milestone, the restart of the AICA Laboratories plant stands as a clear illustration of the coordinated mission that unites Cuba’s biotechnology sector and public health system: to guarantee access to essential medications for all citizens, regardless of external pressures. For a country grappling with externally induced supply shortages, every treatment produced at this expanded facility represents more than just medicine – it is a testament to Cuban public health sovereignty, a source of hope for thousands of patients and families, and a reaffirmation of the state’s longstanding commitment to the universal right to health.

  • UWI Researcher Among Experts in Landmark Global Study on Chronic Kidney Disease

    UWI Researcher Among Experts in Landmark Global Study on Chronic Kidney Disease

    Chronic kidney disease (CKD) has quietly emerged as one of the fastest-growing public health threats across the globe, and a new landmark research series published in *The Lancet* is sounding the alarm over the need for urgent, coordinated action. Among the leading international experts contributing to this pivotal work is Dr. Lori-Ann Fisher, a consultant nephrologist, intensivist and lecturer based at the Epidemiology Research Unit of the Caribbean Institute for Health Research (CAIHR) at The University of the West Indies (The UWI).

    Led by Dr. Jennifer Lees of the University of Glasgow, the multi-paper series frames CKD as a rapidly escalating global health crisis, and calls for sweeping improvements in three core areas: early diagnosis, preventive care, and accessible treatment. In her commentary on the research, Lees emphasized that CKD remains one of the most underaddressed, high-impact conditions affecting global populations today. “The overriding message from our series of research papers is that there remains a pressing need for attention and resources to be focused on this condition,” Lees noted.

    Current global health data underscores the scale of the problem: CKD is already the ninth leading cause of death worldwide, affecting an estimated 844 million people across all income regions. Projections from the study indicate that without targeted intervention, CKD will climb to become the fifth leading cause of global death by 2040. What makes this burden even more striking is the widespread gap in diagnosis: even as cases rise, CKD remains vastly underdetected, a gap that is particularly acute in low- and middle-income regions such as the Caribbean, where public awareness and routine screening infrastructure remain limited.

    For the Caribbean, the CKD burden carries uniquely severe consequences. Data from the Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey shows that roughly 15% of Jamaicans are currently living with CKD, and a large share of those patients are already diagnosed at advanced or high-risk stages of the disease. For Fisher, who has spent years researching CKD epidemiology across the region, the path to better outcomes hinges entirely on earlier detection. In the Caribbean, access to life-saving interventions like kidney transplants and long-term dialysis is severely limited, making early intervention far more critical than in better-resourced regions. “We now have accessible medications that treat kidney disease and reduce progression to kidney failure,” Fisher explained. “In the Caribbean, where access to transplant and dialysis is limited, detecting kidney disease early is crucial to improve outcomes. Investment in strengthening healthcare systems to detect and treat kidney disease is paramount for the health of our nations.”

    One of the core barriers to early detection that the study highlights is CKD’s asymptomatic progression. In early and moderate stages, most patients experience no obvious symptoms, leading to delayed testing and treatment that often only begins once the disease has reached its most severe stages, when organ replacement therapy is already the only viable option. The research confirms that simple, low-cost urine and blood tests can effectively diagnose CKD in its early stages, but routine implementation of these screenings remains inconsistent across most national healthcare systems.

    Fisher’s participation in this landmark global publication is far from an isolated contribution; it reflects The UWI’s decades-long commitment to addressing pressing regional and global health challenges through rigorous research and evidence-based policy advocacy. As a specialist with deep expertise in CKD epidemiology, sickle cell nephropathy, and lupus nephritis in the Caribbean context, Fisher has built a career advancing understanding of CKD prevalence and associated risk factors across Jamaica and the wider Caribbean. She currently also serves as Chair of the International Society of Nephrology (ISN) North America and Caribbean Regional Board, working to amplify the region’s voice in global kidney health priority-setting.

    Now in its 76th year of operation, The UWI has grown from its 1948 founding as a small London-affiliated university college in Jamaica with just 33 medical students into a world-class, globally recognized institution serving nearly 50,000 students across five physical campuses and a global online network. Today, the university’s campuses include Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, Five Islands in Antigua and Barbuda, and its fully online Global Campus, with additional research and academic partnerships with leading institutions across North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe.

    Offering more than 1,000 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree programs across fields ranging from creative arts and engineering to law, medical sciences, and social policy, The UWI stands as the Caribbean’s leading academic institution, home to the region’s largest concentration of research expertise focused on solving the most critical challenges facing Caribbean and global communities. Since 2018, The UWI has held a consistent place in *Times Higher Education* (THE) annual global university rankings, and it remains the only English-speaking Caribbean institution to be featured across four of THE’s most prestigious ranking categories: the World University Rankings, which evaluate more than 2,000 leading research-focused universities globally; the Golden Age University Rankings for institutions founded between 50 and 80 years ago; the Latin America and Caribbean Rankings; and the Impact Rankings, which assess universities based on their contributions to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This global recognition has also supported the launch of the university’s International School for Development Justice (ISDJ), a global online graduate business school focused on training the next generation of leaders to advance equitable sustainable development. As an SDG-engaged university consistently ranked among the world’s top institutions for impact, The UWI continues to center pressing public health challenges like CKD at the core of its research mission.

  • Public Health reports significant decline in disease incidence

    Public Health reports significant decline in disease incidence

    Santo Domingo – The Dominican Republic has held steady, effective epidemiological control across the first 20 weeks of 2026, with public health authorities announcing unprecedented declines in multiple high-priority infectious diseases. The progress is credited to targeted prevention and widespread surveillance systems rolled out across every region of the country, according to an official announcement from the nation’s Ministry of Public Health.

    Local health directorates at both the provincial and area level have led on-the-ground initiatives to curb the spread of diseases tracked under special public health monitoring. Key interventions include systematic elimination of mosquito breeding grounds, proactive door-to-door active case detection, community-led public health outreach, and sustained vector control programs, all of which have combined to drive continued downward trends in infection rates. To catch potential outbreaks early, health officials maintain constant, real-time oversight through the country’s National Epidemiological Surveillance System (SINAVE), which is designed to flag unusual infection clusters and trigger rapid response to protect community health.

    Breaking down the latest epidemiological data, the Ministry reported just 10 new confirmed dengue cases in the most recent reporting week. That brings the total cumulative count for the year to 111 cases, a fraction of the volume recorded in previous years. Nationwide, cholera has maintained a streak of zero confirmed infections for the period under review.

    For malaria, four new cases were documented in the southwestern province of San Juan, but health authorities emphasize the limited outbreak is fully contained and under control. The national cumulative total for 2026 currently stands at 83 cases, marking a dramatic 84% drop from the 511 cases recorded in the same 20-week window in 2025.

    Two additional cases of leptospirosis were reported in the surrounding province of Santo Domingo, pushing the year-to-date total to 149 cases. Public health officials note that the majority of this year’s leptospirosis cases are linked to unusual climatic conditions that have created favorable environments for the bacteria to spread, though overall case counts remain far lower than historical averages.

  • WHO, Africa CDC launch US$518m plan to combat Ebola outbreak

    WHO, Africa CDC launch US$518m plan to combat Ebola outbreak

    GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – In a coordinated response to a rapidly spreading Ebola outbreak that has triggered regional public health alarms, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the African Union’s Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) unveiled a $518 million joint intervention framework on Friday aimed at containing the virus and stopping cross-border spread.

    The six-month initiative, which will run from June through November, targets the ongoing outbreak of the rare Bundibugyo Ebola strain first formally declared in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on May 15. Health officials confirm the virus had likely been circulating undetected in the region for an extended period before the formal declaration, allowing transmission to gain a foothold.

    As of the WHO’s most recent official update, the outbreak has been linked to 381 confirmed cases and 64 fatalities across three DRC provinces. The epicenter of the crisis remains Ituri province, which Africa CDC data shows accounts for 90% of all confirmed infections and 76% of recorded deaths. The virus has already crossed the DRC’s northeastern border into Uganda, where 16 confirmed cases and one death have been recorded to date.

    Addressing reporters at a press briefing, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus outlined the six core priorities of the new plan: coordinated emergency response management, enhanced disease surveillance, expanded laboratory testing capacity, universal infection prevention and control protocols, improved patient clinical care, and targeted community engagement to build trust and spread accurate public health guidance.

    “This is a practical, time-bound and fully costed plan,” Tedros explained. “It lays out clear, shared actions we need to implement immediately to contain the current outbreak and cut the risk of further regional spread.” He added that the total budget for the six-month effort totals $518 million, covering all program activities across the response period.

    Africa CDC officials note the current outbreak is already larger than the two previously recorded outbreaks of the Bundibugyo strain, which occurred in 2007 and 2012 respectively. A critical challenge facing response teams is the lack of any officially approved vaccines or targeted treatments specifically for this strain of Ebola, complicating clinical care and prevention efforts for frontline workers.

  • Spanish Town Hospital urology unit marks five years with 1,500 surgeries completed

    Spanish Town Hospital urology unit marks five years with 1,500 surgeries completed

    KINGSTON, Jamaica — Five years after launching, the specialized urology department at Jamaica’s public Spanish Town Hospital has emerged as a critical regional care hub, closing in on a major professional milestone: nearly 1,500 completed surgical procedures for patients across St Catherine and adjacent parishes. What began as a small targeted service has rapidly expanded access to life-saving urological treatment that once required long, costly travel for local residents.

    First established on May 3, 2021, the unit has not only delivered surgical care but also treated thousands of patients through outpatient services, earning its place as one of the nation’s top public-sector urology centers, per an official statement released Friday by the hospital.

    Dr. Elon Thompson, consultant urologist and founding head of the service, emphasized that the five-year achievement is the product of collective effort across the entire facility’s healthcare team. “This milestone belongs to an entire team of committed healthcare professionals who have worked tirelessly to improve access to specialised urological care for the people of St Catherine and beyond,” Thompson noted in the official release.

    Over its five years of operation, the unit has notched a series of progressive clinical firsts that demonstrate its growing technical capacity. In January 2022, the team completed the hospital’s first ever radical cystectomy — a complex, high-stakes procedure that removes cancerous bladder tissue to treat urological cancer. Just 20 months later, in September 2023, the hospital performed its first laparoscopic nephrectomy, pushing the unit’s ability to offer minimally invasive surgical options that reduce patient risk and recovery time.

    The department has also prioritized addressing one of the most common urological cancers in the region: it has carried out more than 150 prostate cancer-focused procedures to date, including curative radical prostatectomies that eliminate early-stage cancer from patients.

    Most recently, in July 2025, the unit upgraded its technical capabilities with the acquisition of a new surgical laser system. The equipment enables minimally invasive kidney stone procedures, expanding the range of treatments available to local patients while cutting recovery periods and boosting overall surgical success rates.

    For residents of St Catherine and surrounding communities, the growth of the on-site urology service has eliminated a major barrier to care. Prior to the department’s launch, local patients often had to travel long distances to larger urban centers to access even basic specialized urological treatment, a burden that added cost, stress, and delay to care. The service has now drastically reduced that need, bringing high-quality specialty care closer to home.

    Looking forward, the urology team has laid out clear goals for continued growth: expanding access to additional advanced urological procedures, creating more hands-on training opportunities for emerging healthcare professionals in the field, and steadily improving patient outcomes across the entire region.

    “While we are proud of what has been accomplished, our work is far from complete. We remain committed to building on these achievements and ensuring that the people we serve continue to have access to high-quality, modern urological care close to home,” Thompson said.

  • Dominican ophthalmologists warn of eye risks from Saharan dust

    Dominican ophthalmologists warn of eye risks from Saharan dust

    Residents of the Dominican Republic are now facing a little-discussed environmental health hazard tied to transcontinental atmospheric patterns, as the nation’s top ophthalmology body has issued a urgent public warning about the damaging impacts of Saharan dust intrusions on visual and ocular wellness.

    Each year, massive plumes of fine mineral dust lifted from the Sahara Desert in Northern Africa travel thousands of miles across the Atlantic Ocean to settle over the Caribbean, including the Dominican Republic. When concentrations of these tiny airborne particles spike, they create far more than just hazy skies—they pose direct risks to eye health that many people fail to anticipate, according to the Dominican Society of Ophthalmology.

    The organization has outlined a wide range of uncomfortable and potentially disruptive symptoms that can develop after exposure to high levels of Saharan dust. The most frequently reported issues include persistent eye irritation, a constant scratchy sensation like grit trapped under the eyelid, unexplained blurred vision, intense itching, abnormal dryness, and unusual discharge from the eye. Beyond these acute discomforts, the dust intrusion can also trigger serious flare-ups for people already living with chronic ocular conditions. Pre-existing issues such as allergic conjunctivitis and chronic dry eye syndrome often see dramatic worsening, with sharp increases in inflammation, persistent redness, and heightened vision-related discomfort that can interfere with daily activities.

    To help the public protect their ocular health during periods of elevated Saharan dust concentration, ophthalmology specialists have shared a set of clear, actionable preventive guidelines. First, they recommend cutting down on unnecessary time spent outdoors when dust levels are high, to reduce overall exposure to the harmful particles. If residents do need to go outside, they are advised to wear wraparound protective sunglasses that create a physical barrier to keep dust from reaching the eye surface. A critical safety reminder the organization emphasizes is to avoid rubbing the eyes even when irritation occurs, since rubbing can scratch the cornea or push more dust deeper into the eye tissue and worsen inflammation. For managing mild discomfort, specialists suggest using lubricating artificial tear eye drops that do not contain vasoconstrictors—ingredients often added to redness-reducing drops that can actually exacerbate dryness and irritation with long-term use.

    The society also stressed that knowing when to seek professional medical care is a key part of protecting long-term eye health. If symptoms such as persistent itching, ongoing redness, abnormal discharge, constant eye fatigue, or measurable reduced vision do not improve after a short period of treatment with over-the-counter lubricating drops, patients should schedule an appointment with an ophthalmologist immediately to avoid potential long-term damage.

  • New alliance could change how cancer is diagnosed, treated in Saint Lucia

    New alliance could change how cancer is diagnosed, treated in Saint Lucia

    A groundbreaking collaboration between two Caribbean health organizations is set to transform diagnostic and treatment pathways for life-threatening conditions including cancer across Saint Lucia, with ambitions to expand access across the Eastern Caribbean. Starting this week, the partnership between CariGenetics Saint Lucia and Lab Services & Consultations will bring cutting-edge genetic testing, advanced cancer diagnostics, and genomic sequencing services within local reach for patients who previously had to travel overseas to access these tools.

    For oncologists and clinical care teams, the new access to specialized tumour profiling and tissue analysis marks a major shift in how cancer care is delivered. Instead of relying on generalized treatment protocols, clinicians can now tailor therapies to the unique genetic makeup of each patient’s condition, dramatically improving the odds of effective outcomes. Dr. Stephen King, laboratory director at Lab Services & Consultations, emphasized that immunohistochemistry and tumour genetic testing are what separate one-size-fits-all care from truly personalized, targeted medicine that delivers better results for patients.

    Beyond cancer care, the collaboration expands local access to preventative genetic testing as well. Saint Lucians can now access testing to understand their inherited risk of chronic disease, learn how their body will respond to common medications, and gather actionable genetic data to inform long-term healthcare decision-making, all without leaving the country.

    The initiative also carries broader public health benefits for the island nation. Building local sequencing capacity strengthens Saint Lucia’s ability to conduct widespread disease surveillance, track trends in antibiotic resistance, and boost national preparedness to respond to emerging public health threats, from new pathogen outbreaks to evolving chronic disease patterns.

    Devy Frederick, CEO of CariGenetics Saint Lucia, noted that expanding access to new testing services is only the first goal of the partnership. A core priority is integrating these new diagnostic tools directly into local clinical care pathways to ensure they actually translate into tangible improvements for patient outcomes. “The aim of this partnership therefore is not only to introduce new testing services but to ensure that they are properly connected to clinical care,” Frederick explained.

    While services are launching first in Saint Lucia, both organizations frame the collaboration as a stepping stone for a wider regional expansion across the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), working to close the gap in access to advanced diagnostic medicine across small island nations.

    OECS Director General Dr. Didacus Jules hailed the partnership as far more than a standard commercial collaboration. “It is an act of intellectual sovereignty, a declaration that the Eastern Caribbean has the ambition, the talent, and now the infrastructure to participate meaningfully in the future of medicine,” Jules said.

  • Saharan dust affecting Air Quality in Antigua and the Caribbean Sea

    Saharan dust affecting Air Quality in Antigua and the Caribbean Sea

    A new wave of mineral dust carried thousands of miles from the Sahara Desert has driven air quality across the dual-island nation of Antigua and Barbuda into the moderate range, triggering official health warnings that sensitive population groups could face adverse impacts through at least Thursday night. This event marks the 10th significant Saharan dust intrusion recorded in the country this year, underscoring a recurring seasonal pattern that impacts the Caribbean region annually.

    The Antigua and Barbuda Meteorological Service confirmed that concentrations of fine particulate matter tied to the airborne dust pushed the nation’s Air Quality Index (AQI) to between 51 and 70, prompting the activation of an Air Pollution Alert Level II. While the overall air quality remains within the acceptable range for the general public, elevated dust levels create tangible risks for vulnerable groups, officials emphasized.

    Authorities have identified people living with chronic respiratory or cardiovascular conditions, senior citizens, and young children as the most vulnerable to the negative health effects of the fine dust particles. Even among the general population, a small subset of unusually sensitive people, including those with asthma, may experience moderate respiratory discomfort and related health concerns under current conditions.

    In line with public health guidance, local officials are urging active children and adults, as well as anyone with pre-existing respiratory conditions, to cut back on extended strenuous outdoor activity until dust concentrations dissipate and air quality improves. Residents are also encouraged to follow official updates from the Meteorological Service and other trusted government information channels to stay informed of changing air quality conditions and revised forecasts.

    This latest surge forms part of a much larger Saharan dust plume that has been traversing the entire Atlantic Ocean since early June. Data collected by the European Union’s Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service tracked the massive cloud stretching from the arid west coast of Africa all the way to the Caribbean basin earlier this month. Before reaching Antigua and Barbuda, the plume already degraded air quality across Cabo Verde and other Atlantic island nations along its path, matching longstanding forecasts that predicted the dust would spread across most of the North Atlantic before reaching Caribbean waters.

  • Charity Dublin Elected President of Antigua and Barbuda Diabetes Association

    Charity Dublin Elected President of Antigua and Barbuda Diabetes Association

    The Antigua and Barbuda Diabetes Association (ABDA), a leading non-profit focused on addressing one of the twin-island nation’s growing public health challenges, has formally introduced its new executive leadership team to steer the organization’s initiatives across the 2025 to 2027 term. At the helm of the new cabinet is Charity Dublin, who will serve as president, taking responsibility for setting the strategic direction of the association’s work over the coming two years.

    The newly appointed leadership group will take ownership of all core ABDA programs spanning community outreach to boost public diabetes awareness, evidence-based prevention campaigns, accessible patient and caregiver education, and targeted support services for individuals living with the chronic condition across both Antigua and Barbuda. These programs fill a critical gap in the nation’s public health ecosystem, complementing government-led healthcare services with community-centered support that addresses unmet needs for affected populations.

    In an official statement shared by the association, ABDA emphasized that every member of the incoming executive team has reaffirmed their commitment to advancing the organization’s core mission: fostering widespread healthy lifestyle adoption across the country, and expanding the quality and reach of support systems for everyone impacted by diabetes. From newly diagnosed patients to families managing long-term conditions, the team has prioritized centering the needs of affected communities in all upcoming planning and programming.

    As the new leadership prepares to officially take office, ABDA has issued a public call for broad community participation and support for the executive team as they begin their terms of voluntary leadership and service. The association also reiterated a long-held core principle driving its work: collective, cross-community action remains the most powerful tool to meaningfully improve outcomes and quality of life for the thousands of individuals and families across Antigua and Barbuda that navigate the daily challenges of diabetes.