Health Care & Coronavirus

Trinidad and Tobago have one of the highest incidences of chronic disease in the world, often stemming from obesity including diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and cancer due to our diets with a high concentration of sugar and starches.

Our oil money has allowed the state to provide access to free health care, yet the delivery standards remains a sore point. In private health care we also see that the medical profession is not generally held to account for their mistakes. 

After an intense campaign, there was a patients’ bill of rights and doctors code of ethics, but this is not posted in doctors’ offices or state institutions. 

Given that Covid19 has disproportionately killed the black and Asian community in the west and those with underlying diseases, our population is particularly susceptible to the lethal virus. 

The columns demonstrate how everything is interlinked, doctor accountability, public education, and state responsibility.