Vector control programme in Westmoreland extended
Published:Tuesday | February 28, 2023 | 9:42 AM
The vector control programme at the Westmoreland Public Health Department, being undertaken through the Housing, Opportunity, Production and Employment (HOPE) programme, has been extended.
The HOPE programme vector-control initiative is done in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Wellness.
The period for the current cohort in the programme, which was slated for completion this month, will instead end in June.
The disclosure was made by chief public health inspector for the parish, Steve Morris, during the recently held Westmoreland Municipal Corporation meeting in Savanna-la-Mar.
He also stated that the department is looking to increase the number of permanent vector control staff in the parish.
“At the moment, we only have 10 in the parish, and what we have noticed is that when we have the 35 temporary workers, our Aedes index stays within the range that we want it to be. So, we are looking at increasing our numbers to about 35 to 40 persons as permanent workers, so we can have a more consistent effort on this programme,” he said.
The index refers to the percentage of premises or homes in a limited well-defined space where actual breeding of the Aedes aegypti mosquito is found and the total number of houses examined in that area.
Meanwhile, Morris also advised that 25 water truck drivers have completed food handlers training and are well on their way to getting certification.
“Before the end of this month at least 12 of them should be ready. By the end of next month or so we should have all 25. Inspection is being done on the [water] trucks, including the municipal corporation trucks and the National Water Commission (NWC) trucks,” he informed.
“We will be sharing the list of certified trucks with the municipal corporation, the police and other agencies that monitor them. We will also share it with the public, because they will need to know which trucks are certified to deliver water within the parish,” Morris said.
- JIS News
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