“[…] At the San Fernando General Hospital, the nurse to patient ratio is close to one nurse to twenty-two patients and this has been made worse since the advent of the Teaching Hospital. “Now the Covid situation has further depleted staff, as some medical personnel have been assigned to the …
Read More »Rowley: T&T media have interests to protect! PM pushes back on Venezuela narrative
Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley launched a scathing attack on the local media today, which he accused of trying to paint him and his government as ‘liars’ with regards to its narrative on the visit of Venezuela vice-president Delcy Rodríguez and her contingent in March. In today’s …
Read More »T&T in a groove: Phase two starts early, fuel grant for taxis and Chin’s ‘humanitarian’ gesture explained
Trinidad and Tobago will enter phase two, on the road towards the full re-opening of its economy, on Thursday 21 May—some four days ahead of schedule—and it will be bigger than initially suggested. Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley said today that the country’s promising health figures satisfied chief medical officer …
Read More »Dear editor: Prohibition enables rogue barbers; allow us to treat customers safely
“[…] With the government’s unremitting lockdown driving inherently law abiding barbers to make decisions in contravention of Covid-19 restrictions, it’s ultimately causing more harm than good. “Customers are apparently less constricted by these restrictions and more willing to make themselves available for their well overdue weekly grooming. “Inevitably, the obvious …
Read More »Rowley announces phased re-opening of economy; fast food first out of the blocks!
Trinidad and Tobago will start the gradual re-opening of its economy from 11 May with KFC, Wendy’s, doubles and other itinerant and non-itinerant restaurants being first out of the blocks. They will operate until 8pm with no in-house dining. “Food establishments and restaurants would be allowed to open and provide …
Read More »MFO Covid-19 study: High satisfaction in gov’t and Health Ministry, less trust in media
“[…] While international media is the top source for information on the outbreak, the public also places focus on local television channels, and government websites. Locally, government sources take precedence, with the Ministry of Health being considered the most trustworthy source. “[…] Despite the fear and concern for economic well-being, there is …
Read More »Rowley: Two more weeks of lockdown, with four days off for good behaviour; re-opening within sight
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley has asked Trinidad and Tobago to accept another 14 days of economic restrictions and floated the possibility of a lift within 10 days if all goes well. Rowley, accompanied by chief medical officer Dr Roshan Parasram and epidemiologist Dr Avery Hinds, confirmed that the twin …
Read More »Deyalsingh’s dilemma and Prior’s milestone: gov’t reaches reflection point in Covid-19 tussle
“We have gone seven days without a new case of Covid-19,” said AZP News journalist Prior Beharry, a former government advisor during the tenure of the UNC-led People’s Partnership, “is this you think an indictment on the way that you are handling things so far in this crisis; and have …
Read More »Cudjoe: Don’t play games with me! Minister rebuts Wallace as gov’t shapes up Home of Football in one week
It took just one week and a small army of private sector companies, according to Robert Hadad, to get the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association’s Home of Football ready for use. Or rather, as the South-West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) re-christened the facility, the ‘Home of Football-Wellness Centre’. The controversial …
Read More »Noble: Insanity is contagious; forget race, politics and scaremongers and focus on the virus
Joseph Heller’s book ‘Catch-22’ is a satirical novel about war and demonstrates how circular thinking (such as ‘you cannot find your glasses since you need to wear your glasses to see where they are’) does not lead to solutions but dredges up memories that prove to be debilitating. The main …
Read More »Marlon Morris: Does T&T have ‘pandemic response success criteria’ beyond flattening the curve?
“[…] From the onset, the pandemic response success criteria—how we determine success in our handling of the crisis—must be identified with clear timelines and key performance indicators. “Is the success criteria primarily medical and public health-related or social and economic as well? It appears that the key or only goal …
Read More »Deyalsingh prepares for ‘second and third wave’ of virus, Young still tightlipped on security firms
Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said the government is preparing for a possible second and third wave of the Covid-19 virus and has secured 838 beds across the five regional health authorities at ‘tremendous cost to the country in this time of low economic activity’. The increased capacity of the RHA’s, …
Read More »