Regional
Headquarters, Jamaica. February 3, 2020.
“The more
we know the better we’ll be able to cope with this global
challenge”. This statement came from Vice-Chancellor of The
University of the West Indies (The UWI), Professor Sir Hilary Beckles
as he opened a forum themed, Demystifying
the Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) hosted
by the University on Thursday, January 30, 2020. During the two-hour,
livestreamed event which convened regional experts to examine issues
related to the Coronavirus outbreak, the announcement came that the
World Health Organisation (WHO) had declared the virus outbreak a
‘Public Health Emergency of International Concern’. 

Vice-Chancellor
Beckles noted, “The UWI is comforted in the fact that it has
established this expertise to guide not only the institution but the
region, citizens, families and to participate in the global search
for solutions. It goes beyond the area of biology, biochemistry
medicine but also generally behavioral sciences.”

The
forum which took a panel discussion and livestreamed Q & A
format,  heard presentations by Professor Christine Carrington,
Molecular Genetics and Virology Expert at The UWI, St Augustine
Campus; Professor Clive Landis, Zika Task Force Chair and Pro
Vice-Chancellor for Undergraduate Studies at The UWI; Dr
Sandra Jackson,
Department of Microbiology at
The UWI, Mona Campus; Dr Joy St. John, Executive Director of the
Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) and Dr Roshan Parasram, Chief
Medical Officer for Trinidad and Tobago. It was chaired by Pro
Vice-Chancellor Global Affairs and Professor of Practice at The UWI,
Ambassador Dr Richard Bernal. 

Reiterating
the purpose of the forum, Professor Clive Landis explained that the
aim was “to put accurate information into the public domain.” He
stated that The UWI has a system in place and is playing an
increasing role in working with stakeholders in the region and with
communities to address these kinds of health emergencies
similar to its response to the Zika virus
in 2016. He affirmed,
“One of the most important parts of this mission is to provide
reliable, trusted information.” 

In
her presentation, Professor Christine Carrington summarized current
knowledge about the novel Coronavirus but noted that to date not
enough is known about its epidemiology to draw definitive conclusions
about the full clinical features of the disease, the intensity of
human-to-human transmission or the original source of the outbreak.

Speaking
to the Caribbean’s readiness and response, Dr Sandra
Jackson highlighted
the role
the microbiology laboratory at the University Hospital has played
over the years. She recalled that
Jamaica has
previously been exposed to viral outbreaks and pandemics
and has coped adequately. She assured that the University’s
Department of Microbiology has the laboratory expertise to
assist Jamaica in managing this outbreak, as it did for previous
epidemics, noting the Influenza outbreak of 2009 and Zika epidemic
in 2016.

Dr
Joy St. John said that CARPHA has activated an incident management
team and is coordinating the regional health preparedness and
response. She reported that there is currently no known case of the
virus in the Caribbean, and advised that individuals follow credible
sources for information on the virus. 

Dr
Roshan Parasram outlined Trinidad and Tobago’s national response to
the virus, noting that there are similar responses in the other
Caribbean countries. He indicated that among precautionary activities
in Trinidad and Tobago, surveillance has been strengthened at points
of entry, thermal scanners are being used, training of physicians and
healthcare workers has increased, standard operating procedures
updated and national drills are being conducted.

The
forum’s proceedings are available for viewing on demand on UWItv’s
website www.uwitv.org and
social media channels. It will also be rebroadcasted on UWItv’s
cable channel on Flow EVO on Saturday February 8 at 7:30pm (AST).

Initiating
this forum is one aspect of The UWI’s response efforts. The
University’s coordination with regional governments is ongoing,
with a more specific concern to it students and staff who are
currently deployed in China at the UWI-China Institute of Information
Technology (UWICIIT). It continues close communication with its
partner, the Global Institute of Software Technology (GIST) to ensure
safety and wellbeing of the students and staff, while engaging global
precautionary measures as well as the positions adopted by its
stakeholder governments in relation to travel advisories and
screening protocols.