The InterView July -September

THE

INTERVIEW

JULY - SEPT 2022

STORY ON PAGE 2

TCI HOSPITAL SAYS GOOD BYE TO CUBAN SUPPORT Welcome to the July to September edition of the Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital's Newsletter. The publication features stories from across the health care organization. A new edition is published at the end of every quarter.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE Farewell to Cuban Brigade DDME Expo - TCI Hospital proud partner Summer Programme off to a great start KYB Leadership Youngsters visit CHMC Physio Therapy Day- CHMC + CTMC Psychiatric Patient Training Completed

HIGHLIGHTS ON PAGE 3 L to R DDME Director and CEO Denise Braithwaite-Tennant

ARE YOU VACCINATED ?

Get vaccinated against COVID-19 today.

COVID-19 vaccines are provided free to all residents from the Government Primary Health Care Clinics and all private medical facilities.

FAREWELL TO CUBAN BRIGADE

MORE ON PAGE 6

TCI HOSPITAL SAYS GOODBYE TO THE CUBAN BRIGADE The Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital bid farewell to the Cuban brigade on July 19.

The team of health professionals who arrived in the territory on June 15, 2020 during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic to join forces with the TCI Hospital initially consisting of 8 Medical Specialist including a Chief of Brigade, 10 registered nurses, and an administrative assistant, has since dwindled as some physicians and nurses returned home and to other countries to work.

Chief Executive Officer of the TCI Hospital Dr Denise Braithwaite - Tennant said the team will be missed for their indelible contribution to the territory’s fight against Covid-19 "We will miss the Cuban brigade, we will miss them very much. "We have had the Cuban brigade now for two years. It compensated for about 10 nurses and five positions. On behalf of myself in the management of the Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital, I'd first like to thank the Turks and Caicos Islands government for funding those positions for us and also the Cuban brigade for their support.

"And I'd also like to thank the team of the hardworking Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital during this pandemic, and also for supporting us with the increases, like other hospitals, we have had a significant impact when it comes to our staffing levels, especially in our nursing capacity.”

A farewell was held at the Cheshire Hall Medical Centre

We will miss the Cuban brigade, we will miss them very much.

- Dr Denise Braithwaite-Tennant ,CEO Nurse Supervisor Dian Tucker bringing remarks at farewell party

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DDME EXPO - TCI HOSPITAL PARTNERS

TCI Hospital Team at the DDME EXPO

The Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital attended and participated as a key partner in disaster readiness and emergency response at the annual Disaster Management and Emergencies Hurricane Preparedness Expo held on July 1st, 2022.

The Hurricane Preparedness Expo took place at the IGA Smart parking lot from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

At least one dozen stakeholder partners, including the TCI Hospital, convened with informative displays and helpful personnel on-site to share their readiness steps and respond to public concerns.

“We are happy to showcase our hurricane plans and engage residents about maintaining key services during a storm or a disaster for our patients and staff. We are a month in since the official start of the 2022 Hurricane season, the public needs to doFOLLOW your assessments and their inventory, know your risks, know their vulnerabilities, make plans to mitigate against those and do a test run of those plans because if in the event, we need the ability to recover quickly”.

OUR SOSIAL MEDIA

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TCI Hospital’s Clinical Observership Programme is off to a terrific start!!

Students with Pharmacist - Kenniter Myers-Handfield

Five youngsters are on day three of the summer Clinical Observership Programme at the Cheshire Hall Medical Centre. The programme is designed to allow sixth-form and undergraduate college students to gain experience in a teaching hospital to help them make informed career and educational decisions.

The outstanding group includes Biomedical Sciences student Miracle Mubenwafer who is currently studying at Brunel University in London; Meghan Gardiner, a Turks and Caicos Islands Community College Student pursuing a Nursing Degree; Arissa Williams, a Steyning Grammar School student in the United Kingdom; Azariah Seymour who is a British West Indies Collegiate Student, and Aliyah Forbes, a Business student at the Turks and Caicos Islands Community College.

In addition, the students had an educational session with our Medical Devices Reprocessing team, technologist Erica Williams and Department Head David Banton, where they learned about cleaning, disinfection, sterilisation and related procedures in relation to medical devices.

The 10-day program comprises onsite sessions that include a skills lab on phlebotomy, suturing, vital signs, manual handling, applying splints and Heart Saver, and Basic Life Support training.

The students have learned about the Pharmacy Department and how they prepare, compound, stock, and dispense inpatient medications.

MORE ON PAGE 7 Students with Erica Williams MDR Technician

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Farewell Celebration Cuban Brigade

5

Ten

young

leaders

from

the

KYB

Leadership Academy at the Edward C. Gartland Youth Centre spent time with the

TCI

Hospital's

Leadership

on

Wednesday, August 24, 2022.

Upon

their

welcomed Services,

arrival,

by Dr

the

students Chief

Dawn

of

were Medical

Perry-Ewing

and

Deputy Chief of Medical Services, Dr Sani Amatti. They provided an overview of

KYB Youth Leaders with Hospital Management

pursuing careers in health care and then led the tour.

Following

the

departments

tours

throughout

of

various

the

Hospital,

the youngers received a presentation on Pulmonary Hypertension by Dr Sandro Dissels,

Internist-endoscopist

presentation

by

the

Chief

and

a

Executive

Officer of the Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital, Dr Denise Braithwaite-Tennant, on the Hospital's journey to becoming a teaching Hospital.

Chief of Medical Services Dr.Dawn Perry Ewing engaging KYB Leaders

CEO Dr Denise Braithwaite-Tennant said, "It is always a blessing to have students visit the TCI Hospital, where we can showcase the different career options within the healthcare industry. It is never too early to get inspired. I believe that once students have a career path in mind,

they

usually

are

more

driven

through visits such as these, and we are delighted to play a role in that."

The tour ended with lunch with the Hospital Leadership team.

KYB Leaders visiting MDR Department

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MORE SUMMER PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS HERE

Students with MDR Manager -David Banton

Students with Education Manager -Vernessa Forbes

PSYCHIATRIC FIRST AID TRAINING A SUCCESS The Turks and Caicos Island Hospital was pleased to participate in Psychiatric First Aid Training to support our management of High-Risk Psychiatric Patients under our care. Ministry of Health’s Dr Diana Dizon and Kurt Chassang provided informative and valuable theory sessions with practical exercises for the participants aimed at improving situational assessment of patients, risk management and response whilst at all times delivering the highest standards of patient care, dignity, respect and safety for all.

We thank our partner, the Ministry of Health, for this engaging and thorough session.

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THE INTERVIEW

PHYSIO THERAPY DAY- CHMC + CTMC On September 8th and 9th, the Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital joined the rest of the world in unity and solidarity with the global physiotherapy community in observance of World Physical Therapy Day. To raise awareness of the work physiotherapists do for their patients and community, The Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital's Physical Therapy Department at Cheshire Hall Medical Centre and the Cockburn Town Medical Centre hosted educational sessions promoting the role of physiotherapists osteoarthritis.

in

the

prevention

of

Pekiera Brooks, Physio Therapy Manager at the Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital, said, "Our main aim is to raise awareness about the critical role of physical therapists in keeping our community healthy and fit. Although we constantly communicate with our patients, we are happy to have a day dedicated to educating patients about healthy behaviours and ways they can restore functionality to their problem areas".

Prizes were given to patients and other members of the public for their participation.

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PHYSIO THERAPY DAY- CHMC + CTMC HIGHLIGHTS

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