AS part of efforts to improve the health sector, a number of training programmes, including a course for biomedical technicians, will be rolled out in 2022, and a number of healthcare workers will be given an opportunity to study abroad.

This is according to Minister of Health Dr Anthony, who on Friday said that the biomedical technicians’ course will be a collaborative effort between his ministry and International Biomedical, a non-governmental organisation (NGO).

“They would be offering this particular course to locals. We intend to train about 40 persons using this organisation and once trained, they will be able to do maintenance of a lot of the equipment that we have in the surgical theatres and so forth,” Dr Anthony said.

Additionally, he mentioned that lots of other opportunities will become available this year, including the training of community health workers. These courses, he said, will be carried out in several regions inclusive of Regions One and Nine.

“We will be running training to do pharmacy aides [and] laboratory aides…these are people who will have basic training in how to dispense, basic training in how to do simple tests in the laboratory, but these tests are absolutely essential for diagnosis, especially in the rural communities,” he added.

Dr Anthony said that while these courses will be run in the various regions, there will also be a number of nursing training opportunities that will be available at the three nursing schools in the country. These courses include the registered nurse and midwifery programmes.

He further stated that the medex and dentex training programmes will continue this year, while doctors will have access to post-graduate training, with available opportunities in Cuba, in the United States of America, at the University of the West Indies and at the local post-graduate institute.

“So, during the year, a number of persons will be sent overseas for specialised training,” he added.