Brac’s Rotary Club members.

Amidst inclement weather, the Cayman Brac Rotary Club, in partnership with the Health Services Authority (HSA) and the Baptist Health System, hosted a health symposium on 16 May at the Aston Rutty Centre in Cayman Brac.

HSA’s CEO Lizzette Yearwood and others, who were on their way to the Brac for the event, had to return to Grand Cayman due to the weather conditions.

The theme for the symposium was “Make Dreams Real for a Healthier Life Style”. Considering the timely recovery process from Hurricane Paloma and the challenges facing the community, the hosts said it was relevant to address the following topics: ‘Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Stress’, ‘Management in Type 11 Diabetes, Stress Management’, ‘Gastroenteritis and Helping Children Cope with Stress’.

Dr Srirangan Velusamy, Medical Officer in charge of Faith Hospital, was the moderator for the first session followed by Dr D. Mulgrave-Thorpe for the second session.

Ana Bassil, Director for International Relation and Protocol at Baptist Health Systems, with her team of two psychologists and a gastroenterologist made interesting and stimulating presentations which had the audience wanting more. They had a booth on display with a wide range of literature addressing several illnesses as well as a bag of goodies for each guest.

As the theme for this Rotary year is “Make Dreams Real” with emphasis on reducing child mortality rate, much attention was given to parents by Dr Eleen Strot in her presentation on ‘Helping Children Cope with Stress’. She commended the initiative taken by the authorities in organizing activities at the Youth Centre for the children on the Brac shortly after Paloma, rather than getting them back to the routine of school life.

The attendanees were encouraged to share their experiences by talking about it, expressing themselves artistically, in poem and drama on how what they saw during such an ordeal.

Dr Strot donated some workbooks to the schools entitled ‘After the Hurricane - a guide to help children cope with the psychological effects of a Hurricane’.

Dr Grace Ezema, of Faith Hospital, made a fantastic presentation on Stress Management in Type 11 Diabetes and went on to invite participants to join the support group which they will be starting at the hospital.

The group will be launched with a presentation on 11 June at 4:00 pm at the Dental Clinic. The target groups are diabetics, their family and healthcare giver. The purpose is to raise awareness in the Cayman Brac Community, to highlight the potential risk of diabetes and encourage them to take an active role in their health.

Each session was followed by an opportunity for questions. The audience seized this chance and the quality of questions asked was indicative of the keen attention given to the information presented.

There was a question and answer session at the end of each presentation which the audience took part in. At lunch time everyone was treated to some healthy food which comprised fruits, salads, juices, vegetable salads with chicken strips etc.

Throughout the day Faith Hospital staff was busy screening for diabetes and doing blood pressure checks on attendees.

President Alphanso Gayle applauded Vice President and Committee Chair Valerie Bolageer for a job well done. Organisers send a “heartfelt thank you” also to everyone who contributed to the success of this event.