Rotary Club and partners begin phase two of Breast Cancer Awareness Project

THE ROTARY CLUB of St Vincent is entering the second phase of a national breast cancer awareness project which is being done in association with the Rotary Club of Prosperity- Taiwan, and the Ministry of Health Wellness and the Environment (MOHWE).

This comes on the heels of the receipt of three lightweight, mobile ultrasound units which were handed over to the Ministry of Health on June 19.The Rotary Club said in a release that this element represents the education and training component of the capacity building phase of the project and will see the training of two radiographers in ultrasonography techniques and the use of the mobile ultrasound equipment.The training will be facilitated at the MacKay Memorial Hospital, one of the largest medical centres in Taiwan. Radiographers, Celeste Cumberbatch and Genese Nichols are expected to leave this weekend for Taiwan, and on their return will be sufficiently equipped with the competencies required to utilize the equipment for screening purposes and thereby fully initiating phase two of the project.

The release states that for the past eight months, the Rotary Club of St.Vincent has been actively educating the public and raising awareness on breast health matters and the importance of regular screening throughout SVG as part of its Global Grant-funded Breast Cancer Awareness Project.

Since the official launch in November 2022, the Club and its project partners have embarked on a robust community awareness campaign on mainland St Vincent and in the Grenadines geared towards sensitizing the public on the importance of regular breast self-checks and screening.

The three BenQ mobile ultrasound screening devices which were purchased under the project, and handed over earlier this month, will facilitate breast screening of thousands of citizens throughout SVG directly from the comfort of their own homes, if preferred, as the lightweight equipment are designed to move about effortlessly with the technologists, the release adds. At the handing over ceremony on June 19, at the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan), Ambassador Peter Sha-Li Lan confirmed the commitment of the Government of Taiwan to supporting the advancement of health promotion and disease prevention initiatives

in SVG. Chief health promotions officer Shanika John, who received the machines on behalf of the MOHWE expressed gratitude for the opportunity to promote wellness, stimulate behaviour change, and build technical capacity of the medical team through this partnership. Also in attendance was Dr. Janelle Allen, project lead of the Rotary Club of St.Vincent.

This training component is being funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Taiwan and is valued at US$40,000.00.

President-elect of Rotary Club of St.Vincent Mikasha Ramsaran, speaking at the ceremony extended best wishes to the trainees for a productive, successful training exercise and reiterated the Club’s gratitude to the Rotary family in Taiwan, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Taiwan, for their overwhelming support in ensuring that this project received the funding required to meet its objectives of enhancing the lives of Vincentian women and girls through access to free breast screening and breast health education services. Centred on one of Rotary’s seven areas of focus –disease prevention and treatment, this is the first Global Grant funded project to be accessed by the Rotary Club of St.Vincent and is valued at approximately US$223,183.00, through contributions from Rotary Clubs across 12 districts in Taiwan, Rotary International, and the Government of Taiwan.

Community awareness campaign activities are scheduled to continue during this month through to July, 2024. During the 2023-2024 Rotary year medical professionals from Taiwan will visit SVG to observe the trainees in action and facilitate additional training with other health care professionals in the field of radiology.