HIV/AIDS AND ALCOHOLISM both engaged the attention of online readers last week.
During a panel discussion on challenges facing modern health care in Barbados, Chief Medical Officer Dr Joy St John revealed about 1.2 per cent of adults were living with HIV/AIDS and it remained a problem.
Meanwhile in the Senate, Minister of Labour Dr Esther Byer also raised concerns about the number of young people posing with alcohol on social media. She warned if the message was not changed to inform of the dangers of alcohol to one’s health, the country would be facing a “dire situation” later.
Online readers weighed in on both issues.
HIV/AIDS:
Pat Burrowes Speede Puckerin: It is obvious, people don’t care if they catch it; the medication making you live 25 years.
Jacqui Marshall: They’re not doing a good job of getting the message out if what I see on CBC is what I have to go by. Message is too trite. Plus young people do not watch CBC or read the newspapers. There isn’t even a good birth control campaign going which should be tied into the HIV message. They need to formulate one that is tailored to this population. That the STD rate is so high is an indication that this campaign has failed.
Shirley Holder: I worked with people who are HIV-positive for 16 years and a lot of them are angry. They don’t mind passing it on. Funny those patients used to go out and have unprotected sex.
Ryan Williams: I see a big campaign all over Bim. I just think we as grown people should not use “advertising campaigns” or a lack thereof as an excuse as to why we continue to be promiscuous. I know that touching a high voltage cable could get me electrocuted, so should I blame the government for a lack of advertising, warning me about getting electrocuted? I kinda getting tired of this reliance on public media to warn us against the things we should already know about.
Alcohol
Philip F. Corbin: It’s a problem among adults as well!
Mixie Pierreponte: Not only teens, adults big time. I don’t understand what statistics these people look upon? I’m puzzled.
Philmore Oswin Mc Millan: In Barbados, almost every corner we turn, a rum shop appears, television, radio and the average Joe pushing it in our faces.
Haroon Chothia: The problem about alcohol is that it is legal.
Justin Daniel: Duh? Many of the older West Indian men in my life that I knew were huge alcoholics, mostly rum drinkers. It’s a thing.
