JMDA: Docs undermining vax drive will be reported
Published:Tuesday | November 23, 2021 | 12:10 AMChristopher Thomas/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Dr Mindi Fitz-Henley, president of the Jamaica Medical Doctors Association (JMDA), has said that members acting contrary to the Government’s COVID-19 vaccination efforts by discouraging citizens from taking the jab without sound medical reasons could face sanctions.
Last week, the JMDA revealed that there were specific categories of health workers who have reportedly been trying to change persons’ minds when they turn up at vaccination centres to be inoculated against the deadly virus, although it did not point any fingers.
Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton had also dispatched a November 10 letter to senior health officials, warning that action would be taken against health workers who are found to be guilty of the practice.
Difficult situation
“We, as a union, do not actually impose sanctions, so what we would have to do is to refer the person to the Medical Council of Jamaica, as they are the body that would handle those matters. It is a difficult situation to be found in, but if it is that we actually have names of any of these persons for sure, and if any of them belong to our organisation, they will be reported,” Fitz-Henley told The Gleaner.
She noted that the JMDA has not had any reports of such actions among its members, but stressed that “the things that affect any of us will affect all of us, and so it is important that the message goes out to everyone that this is a behaviour that cannot be tolerated”.
Pointing to the country’s “very strong” immunisation record largely driven by public health nurses, Fitz-Henley said that the efforts within and outside the health sector to cripple the vaccination drive were disheartening.
“We have won prizes in the past for what we have been able to accomplish with our different immunisation rates and abilities, so we need to make sure that we stick to what it is we have always known and that we do our part as best as we can. Persons who are encouraging or dissuading others from being vaccinated are hampering the team and all the efforts we have been doing since March 10 this year,” said Fitz-Henley.
The Western Regional Health Authority has indicated that it is aware of one health worker being reported, although it did not identify the person or their specific profession.
As of Monday, 1,078,932 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered to Jamaicans, surpassing the one million doses that the Ministry of Health had aimed to distribute by the end of November.