Month: July 2020

MHS in South Florida to join forces with Caribbean colleagues against COVID-19

The Memorial Healthcare System (MHS) in South Florida shares words of wisdom with Caribbean colleagues, to join forces against COVID-19 pandemic.

Press Release – The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the ways that people work, communicate, and socialize, giving birth to this “new normality” that, though widely discussed, remains foreign to most of humanity. Many have lost their loved ones and others have won the fight against the deadly virus, but one of the things that hasn’t changed is the commitment that the Memorial Healthcare System in South Florida has to its patients throughout this pandemic under the direction of Dr. Paula A. Eckardt, Chief of Memorial’s Division of Infectious Disease, who works alongside a highly trained team in critical care, nursing and laboratory.

COVID-19 directly affects the respiratory system, which is why it has been so difficult to attack and, at the same time, spreads very easily. Dr Paula A. Eckardt, Chief of Infectious Disease at Memorial Healthcare System, together with the team of doctors and nurses at the hospital, has successfully followed strict hygiene levels, temperature screening, physical distancing, and virtual methods to assist in reducing the virus transmission.

Except for the Dominican Republic (with more than 27,000 coronavirus cases), the Caribbean islands are a low-impact COVID-19 zone. Nonetheless, taking the right precautions will be the best way to stop the virus from spreading and maintaining this area as safely as possible. Dr Eckardt has followed all CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines and recommends for all medical institutions to take extreme precautions and to stay alert to a possible COVID-19 rebound. The infectious disease expert insists on wearing masks, restricting visitations for all patients, and offering a virtual appointment when possible. Dr Eckardt also suggests allowing everyone to access a test (with symptoms or without) since asymptomatic positive COVID people can be at high risk of spreading the disease without even knowing it.

Fighting against coronavirus without a vaccine or a specific treatment has been the biggest challenge for healthcare workers and the South Florida facility was selected to participate in the trial of the drug Remdesivir (broad-spectrum antiviral). There is limited information known about the safety and effectiveness of using remdesivir to treat people in the hospital with COVID-19. Remdesivir was shown in a clinical trial to shorten the time to recovery in some people.

“We won’t stop fighting against this pandemic, and we are working together every day with the research department in order to find better ways to assist and treat our COVID-19 patients,” said Dr. Eckardt.

About Memorial Global Health:

Memorial Global Health provides personalized coordination of specialized and emergency medical services for adult and pediatric international patients. The Memorial Healthcare System offers premier clinical expertise throughout their six hospitals including Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, exclusively dedicated to the care of children. For more than 60 years, the physicians, nurses, specialists, and healthcare professionals at Memorial have placed patients and their families at the heart of everything they do. The skilled team at Memorial offers patient-and-family-centred care by partnering with patients and their families.

About Memorial Healthcare System:

Memorial Healthcare System is one of the largest public healthcare systems in the United States and has served South Florida since 1953. The South Florida community has benefited from compassionate healthcare delivered according to the service vision of Deeper Caring, Smarter Healthcare. Memorial has six hospitals and more than 150 employed physicians, who compose of the Memorial Physician Group; a nursing home; home health services; research, and primary and urgent care centers; and the South Broward Community Health Services. In 2013, the Memorial Health Network led the way in putting the clinically-integrated healthcare delivery model into action. By expanding on this new framework, Memorial will continue to improve the quality, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness of the services they proudly provide.

The post MHS in South Florida to join forces with Caribbean colleagues against COVID-19 appeared first on Caribbean News Now!.

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American Airlines Begins Big Caribbean Relaunch

 

American Airlines kicked off a major relaunch of service to the Caribbean on Tuesday, resuming flights to a host of reopened destinations across the region. 

American resumed eight routes from Miami on July 7, including service to Santo Domingo, Santiago, Punta Cana and Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic; Port-au-Prince, Haiti; along with flights to Eleuthera, Georgetown, Exuma and Nassau, all in The Bahamas. 

In the next few weeks, American will be relaunching service to Saint Lucia, Aruba, St Vincent, St Maarten and Providenciales in Turks and Caicos. 

The vast majority of the relaunched flights will be from Miami; the remainder will be relaunching from Charlotte. 

“American has a long and proud history in the Caribbean and we are thrilled to continue resuming our operations, flying this month a schedule that includes up to 42 daily flights to 19 destinations in the region,” said Jose Freig, Managing Director for the Caribbean and Latin America. “We are looking forward to safely serving our customers in the Caribbean and to help restart travel and tourism in the region.”

Santo Domingo will see the biggest relaunch, with three daily flights, followed by Nassau with two flights each day and the Miami-Providenciales route, which will also operate twice daily. 

American had already been flying a limited schedule in the region, with flights to San Juan, St Thomas and St Croix. 

Last month, American resumed flights to Antigua, Kingston and Montego Bay. 

The carrier will be operating 42 daily flights to the Caribbean in July, with more flights expected for August. 

See the full flight relaunch schedule below:

american airlines caribbean relaunch
Key: SDQ (Santo Domingo) STI (Santiago, DR) POP (Puerto Plata, DR) PUJ (Punta Cana) PAP (Port-au-Prince) ELH (Eleuthera) GGT (Georgetown, Exuma) NAS (Nassau) UVF (Saint Lucia) AUA (Aruba) SVD (St Vincent) SXM (St Maarten) PLS (Providenciales, Turks and Caicos)

The post American Airlines Begins Big Caribbean Relaunch appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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Caribbean Airlines Relaunches Flights from Jamaica

 

Caribbean Airlines has relaunched its commercial operations from its hub in Kingston. 

The airline has resumed daily flights between Kingston and New York, with nonstop flights between Kingston and both Toronto and Miami to begin this week. 

“The resumption of phased commercial operations out of Jamaica marked a significant day for all stakeholders. Our teams and crews have been preparing for the re-start of our flights, and we have implemented several measures to keep our employees and passengers safe,” said Garvin Medera, CEO of Caribbean Airlines. 

The airline has also increased its service on the “air bridge” between the islands of Trinidad and Tobago.

Caribbean Airlines is also continuing its cargo operations on both freighter service and the airline’s Boeing 737 fleet. 

— CJ

The post Caribbean Airlines Relaunches Flights from Jamaica appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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Puerto Rico braces for political upheaval involving governor

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Puerto Rico’s governor denied allegations … after an incident at the Puerto Rico Office of the Special … clear if the leader of Puerto Rico’s House of Representatives, … party.
Vázque served as Puerto Rico’s justice secretary before the …

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EIN PR news, Island Life

Riu Reopens 11 Caribbean Resorts

 

Riu Hotels and Resorts has reopened 11 of its all-inclusive resorts in the wider Caribbean-Mexico region, Caribbean Journal has learned. 

The reopenings include the Riu Palace Paradise Island in The Bahamas; the Riu Palace Aruba; the Riu Ocho Rios in Jamaica; and the Riu Palace Bavaro in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. 

That’s along with a broad reopening push in the Mexican Caribbean that includes four Cancun-area resorts: the Riu Palace Peninsula; the Riu Cancun; the Riu Caribe; the Riu Palace Las Americas and the Riu Dunamar. 

Riu has also relaunched its Riu Palace Riviera Maya and Riu Playacar, both of which are in Playa del Carmen. 

Other Mexico reopenings include the Riu Vallarta and Riu Palace Pacifico on the Riviera Nayarit, along with the Riu Santa Fe in Cabo San Lucas. 

Riu says it has implemented a “comprehensive manual” for post-COVID hotel operations covering 17 different protocols. 

Those range from temperature checks for all guests upon arrival to the provision of masks to new virucidal spray disinfecting of rooms. 

At restaurants, meal hours have been extended to “avoid rush hour crowds.”

Riu also says it is making gloves and masks mandatory for guests to “access and approach the buffet.”

“An employee will take you to your table, which will have a single-use tablecloth that has been disinfected beforehand, as well as the chairs, which will also be placed to respect the safety distance,” the company said. “Cutlery is no longer collected at the buffet and is placed on the table in sealed envelopes, and drinks will be served at your table.”

Most notably, Riu is capping its hotels to a maximum occupancy of between 50 and 60 percent. 

“All our staff have received specific training on how to apply these protocols and offer our usual service but now with maximum safety guarantees,” the company said in a statement. 

Riu has also launched what it is calling “Riu Protect,” a medical assistance service for guests that includes medical care in the event of a “possible COVID-19 infection while on holiday.”

For more, visit Riu.

The post Riu Reopens 11 Caribbean Resorts appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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