Sherine Huntley-Jones: The passionate ‘mosquito lady’

SHERINE Huntley-Jones is a Christian who is passionate about ministry life and vector control locally.

Eleven years ago she shattered the glass ceiling in health by becoming the first female medical entomologist in Jamaica, studying insects, including their relationships with other animals, their environments, and human beings — an area most women would opt out of.When

All Woman caught up with Huntley-Jones at her National Public Health Laboratory office, she shared that entomology was farthest from her mind when she began her studies at the University of the West Indies (UWI). Instead, like most students who pursued the sciences, she wanted to become a medical doctor.Huntley-Jones revealed that in her first year at UWI she had to do natural sciences, then use the grades obtained there to matriculate to medicine; however, due to the intensity of studying, she chose microbiology. She further explained that in the summer before her final year, she applied for a job and ended up working alongside the late Professor Peter Vogel in the entomology department at UWI.“He employed me to observe iguanas for eight weeks up by Hope Gardens. It is in those eight weeks that I was introduced to the field of entomology, and he asked me if I wanted to do my elective courses in entomology in my final year. That’s where I started, and I loved it. It was a new field for me… not many persons did it. At the time I did general entomology and I was not confined to a desk; I was out in the field,” she said.From there, Huntley-Jones was employed to the Ministry of Health (MoH) to work with the medical entomologist, then sponsored by the government to do her master of science degree in medical entomology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of London. On completing her studies in 2006, she assumed the title of medical entomologist at the MoH.After a span of 19 years in that post, Huntley-Jones says the experience has been rewarding, despite numerous challenges.“For many years there was not a focus on vector control as we never had some diseases. We had to struggle to get the resources to enhance the programme, and the priority I wanted to be placed on the programme was not there. So I would question why I stayed, but I really loved it and now we are seeing progress.“There’s the development of a certification programme for vector control workers, which prior to 2013 never existed. We have, among other things, the establishment of a structured surveillance system for our mosquitoes. We have identified the 45-gallon drums as our main breeding sites, and developed a strategy for the control of those drums, and we have established the integrated vector management approach to vector control, which looks at bringing all possible options and stakeholders to the table to answer and speak to vector control. All this was possible with the team at MoH. The minister also developed the mosquito control and research unit that I will be coordinating. It’s a collaboration with UWI to coordinate the efforts in research and the efforts in operation to come up with innovative tools and strategies to reduce the vector population and our vulnerability to vector-borne diseases through applied research,” Huntley-Jones explained.Affectionately known as the ‘mosquito lady’, a title she admits to wearing proudly, Huntley-Jones says she remains committed to working to reduce the vector population.“Mosquito-borne diseases have impacted Jamaica and the region severely for the past 20 years, and have caused [a major] impact on our health systems and economy; so anything we can do to reduce that, it is welcomed,” she said.Outside of her duties at the MoH, Huntley-Jones shared that she does work with young women in marginalised communities, educating them about sexual abuse and also preaching salvation.“Some time ago in one week I spoke to three different young women who were all sexually abused by the age of 13, but they met Christ and are able to go on with their lives. I’ve seen the power of salvation, and my passion as an evangelist is to preach that with Christ you’re able to overcome. My church members and I work with young girls in select communities to let them understand that their bodies belong to them and not to anyone else; sexual abuse is not acceptable in any way, shape, form or at any age. In all that I do, I want people to see God through me,” she said.