Jamaicans seeking jobs in the public health sector are being encouraged to attend the health and wellness ministry’s first-ever career expo and employment fair on January 22 and 23 at The University of the West Indies, Mona campus.

The event will not only showcase the range of careers in the sector, it will afford Jamaicans the opportunity to fill vacancies islandwide.

“This event is intended to help to progress the country’s journey to ensuring the achievement of goal four of the Vision for Health 2030 strategic plan for health: ‘ensuring human resources for health in sufficient number and competencies, committed to the mission’,” a ministry release quotes Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Christopher Tufton.

He added that the ministry is committed to overcoming the existing gaps in human resources for health and that is demonstrated by the scale of the event and its prioritisation of the needs of students, career changers, job seekers, and others who are curious to find out what it takes to succeed in public health.

The expo and employment fair is being held in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, under the theme ‘A career in health: Roadmap to Success’.

According to the health ministry, the event is being held in response “to prevailing challenges to human resources for health, including the limited availability of professionals for some specialist areas, migration, and competition from overseas recruiters”.

The expo will also see personnel from different professional groups providing advice on financing a career in health. That includes exposure to the Dr Barrington Wint Scholarship, which makes available up to $1 million per recipient for up to five years.

The scholarship is open to Jamaicans pursuing studies in, among other areas, medical technology, human resources for health, medical social work, epidemiology, medical physics, health records management, hospital/health care management, information systems for health, pharmacy, dentistry, health economics, as well as nursing and medicine.

Dr Wint, who died in 2006, had a long and distinguished career in public health, during which he served as Jamaica’s chief medical officer from 1989 until his passing.