LUCEA, HANOVER — HIV/AIDS data from the Ministry of Health and Wellness has painted a worrying trend in which resort parishes account for the highest number of cases, with St Ann showing the biggest jump in 2020.

Between January of 1982 and December of last year, the six parishes with the highest HIV/AIDS cases were located in areas with significant tourism-based economics. St James led the way followed by Kingston and St Andrew, St Ann, Westmoreland, Trelawny, and Hanover.

“When you look at the cases that were reported in 2020, what really stood out for us at the national level was that St Ann came on board as another parish that was stepping up in terms of the number of cases reported in 2020… When you look at the northern parishes you can see the impact of HIV cases within the tourism sector,” said Dr Alisha Robb-Allen, acting senior director of the Ministry of Health and Wellness’ HIV/STI Unit.

The groups of concern include men having sex with men, transgender women, the homeless and inmates.

Dr Robb-Allen was addressing a Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo) HIV awareness webinar held on Wednesday. The webinar was held under the theme: ‘HIV and tourism, how one impacts the other’.

The programme was chaired by Marline Stephenson-Dalley, Corporate Communications and Community Awareness coordinator at the TPDCo, who noted that the figures presented painted an alarming picture.

“When I look at the ranking I am seeing resort destination areas. A lot of people don’t see Kingston as a resort but it is a resort destination, being the entertainment capital of not just Jamaica but the Caribbean. Looking at other resort areas, and I am looking at St James which is perhaps the Montego Bay impact there, St Ann, that is an interesting figure with them jumping up 46 something [per cent]. And, of course, Westmoreland — we have Negril there, Trelawny — we know what is happening along that stretch from Falmouth going up and, of course, Hanover which is a part of the Negril area,” she said.

Dr Robb-Allen agreed with Stephenson-Dalley’s assessment that the numbers are alarming but noted that, “it gives us an opportunity to do something about it”.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, who gave the opening remarks, said the TPDCo webinar was aimed at providing information that will empower stakeholders in making the right choices, and to rationalise and recognise the importance of responsible socialising.

Apart from the impact on the tourism sector, the webinar also focused on health-related rights, the protection that the laws of the land gives, as well as providing information about discrimination and stigma.

“This and other initiatives form part of our preparation for a bigger and better sector and an open-minded and empowered workforce. So, this session, I have no doubt, will play a major role in your enlightenment,” said Bartlett.

“Take charge of your health and the health of those around you as we work towards becoming a better version of ourselves every day and towards the setting of a tourism industry to become more expansive, inclusive and sustainable.”

The first case of the virus was detected in Jamaica in 1982. Since then, the HIV epidemic has become both generalised and concentrated in the country.

It is estimated that 32,000 of Jamaica’s 2.7 million people are infected with HIV. Data from the ministry also shows that 14 per cent are unaware of their HIV status and are not accessing treatment.

Groupings such as people who may have previous sexually transmitted infections, female sex workers, men who have sex with men, prison inmates and homeless persons have showed a higher prevalence.

However, while there has been a general decrease in the general population between 2010 and 2020, there has been a high prevalence in the transgender women and men who have sex with men community. Besides, the data from the ministry has shown a slight increase in the homeless and inmates population.

“Of note, our female sex workers are doing well. The prevalence has dropped significantly from the 1990s and this really is as a result of a lot of work that was done in engaging the population in the early stages of the epidemic and the continued engagement of this group,” stated Dr Robb-Allen.

On the other hand, the unit has also noticed an increase in cases among the youth population.

In the past, the ministry and its related programmes had an active campaign. However, with the advent of treatment, the programme has shifted to ensuring that people living with HIV have access to care.

Despite continued work in the background and with a noticeable showing of the infection in the younger population, the need has risen for the ministry to be more vocal.

“We see where new infections are coming up in the population that we think should not be affected in terms of our young people and we have seen through our studies that there has been a drop off in terms of education and empowerment of persons in terms of knowledge base for sexual practices. We as a country and not just the Ministry of Health and Wellness, all sectors need to be involved in not only educating our population but also putting in policies, reviewing and updating laws to ensure that persons who are affected and living with HIV are able to access services as any other Jamaica,” stated Dr Robb-Allen.