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Shipping industry benefits from wellness fair

Published:Tuesday | August 9, 2011 | 12:00 AM
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Christopher Copeland, technical assistant, National Blood Transfusion Services, reassures Christine Whittick of Port Contractors Limited as she prepares for her consultation to donate blood.
Dionne Gordon (left), Shipping Association of Jamaica's (SAJ) operations manager - property and administration, shares a light moment with Neisha Rangolan-Williams, SAJ's occupational health nurse, just seconds before her cholesterol test.
Loraine Riley, human resource clerk, Shipping Association of Jamaica (SAJ), provides Grantley Stephenson, member of the SAJ's managing committee and chief executive officer of Kingston Wharves Limited, with information on these Holiday whole-grain snacks sponsored by Jamaica Biscuit Company.
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More than 300 members of the shipping industry and their families recently benefited from the Shipping Association of Jamaica's (SAJ) three-day health-and-wellness fair.

The fair, held at the SAJ's Fourth Avenue offices from July 27-29, provided blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar and HIV tests. Industry members also benefited from workshops on HIV and healthy living as well as dental and medical services.

The HIV workshops were organised as part of the SAJ's efforts to educate members on the disease. The SAJ is a signatory to the Voluntary Compliance Programme for Occupational Health and Safety and HIV awareness programme of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security. "This only helps to solidify SAJ's commitment to the well-being of its workforce," Luckresha Ramsamugh-Baker said.

The event saw members donating blood towards the establishment of an account with the National Blood Transfusion Services (Blood Bank).

Targeting lifestyle diseases

Ramsamugh-Baker, SAJ's training manager, said the fair was held in response to an increase in lifestyle diseases that could severely affect the workforce. "We thought a health-promotion initiative, in the form of a fair, aimed at helping employees and their families find the right programmes, tools and support to make healthy lifestyle choices, would curtail these diseases," she said.

Ramsamugh-Baker pointed out that the fair was geared towards the entire family, as all members are affected by these health issues and an unhealthy family translates into a stressed and unhealthy worker.

"We believed that this would be a good way to begin the edification of our employees and their families," she added.

The three-day initiative had specific focus on each day. Day one focused on lifestyle diseases; day two focused on HIV/AIDS awareness with a testimonial from an individual living with HIV; and day three focused on healthy eating, and featured Mazie Miller from Grace Kitchens with a live demonstration.

The health-and-wellness fair saw the SAJ partnering with companies such as Lasco Foods Limited, Carimed, Amalgamated Distributors, T. Geddes Grant and the Jamaica Biscuit Company to be a part of the event by displaying healthy food options.

The fair also focused on financial health and saw representatives from the Bank of Nova Scotia, National Commercial Bank, Sagicor and C&WJ Co-operative Credit Union on hand to educate members and their families on preparation for retirement as well as making sound financial choices.