The Healthy Caribbean Coalition (HCC) in partnership with the Sint. Maarten Ministry of Public Health Social Development And Labour – Collective Prevention Services, for members of various Caribbean Cancer Societies and Foundations recently, hosted a two-day workshop on Cervical Cancer Advocacy Capacity Building at the Sonesta Great Bay Beach Resort & Casino in St. Maarten.
The workshop was made possible through the generous support of the American Cancer Society, Health Action Partnership International (UK) and GlaxoSmithKline.
Several pan-Caribbean agencies were represented at the conference which had representation from Barbados (Barbados Cancer Society, Cancer Support Services and the Barbados Family Planning Association), Belize (Belize Cancer Society), Bermuda (Bermuda Cancer and Health Centre), Dominica (Dominica Cancer Society), Grenada (Grenada Cancer Society), Guyana (Cancer Institute of Guyana), Haiti (Groupe de Support Contre Le Cancer), Jamaica (The Jamaica Cancer Society), St. Lucia (St. Lucia Cancer Society), St. Maarten (The St. Maarten Cancer Foundation, Positive Foundation, KeLaHa Projects, SZV (Social Sickness Insurance)), Saint Martin (AGWEDC), The Bahamas (Cancer Society of the Bahamas), The Cayman Islands (Cayman Islands Cancer Society), St. Kitts & Nevis (Reach for Recovery), Suriname (Pink Ribbon Foundation Suriname) and Trinidad & Tobago (Trinidad & Tobago Cancer Society).
The workshop is one part of a region wide campaign to raise awareness of cervical cancer and stimulate community-based efforts to reduce the mortality rates, developed in support of the “Regional Strategy and Plan of Action for Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control in Latin America and the Caribbean”, approved by the 48th Directing Council of PAHO/WHO. (HCC News)
