A third cohort of seed instructors from the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Elderly Affairs is scheduled to undertake a six-week capacity building stint in Taiwan from May this year.

The six healthcare professionals were introduced at the closing ceremony for the fourth workshop held under the “Capacity Building Project for the Prevention and Control of Metabolic Chronic Diseases”. The two-day workshop was held at Bel Jou Hotel in La Pansee, Castries, on Wednesday, April 2, and Thursday, April 3, 2025.

The two-day workshop formed part of a week of activities that included I-Screen home visits, field visits, and a panel discussion. The panel discussion targeted healthcare professionals, secondary school students and nursing students, Ministry of Education staff, and other stakeholders. During the panel discussion, information related to Taiwan’s expertise in kidney disease and obesity strategies was shared.

Speaking at the closing ceremony on the final day of the workshop, H.E. Nicole Su, Taiwan’s Ambassador to Saint Lucia, noted the continuing efforts and steady progress of the project, and highlighted significant strides made, including empowering policymakers and 11 seed instructors, hosting over 10 public health education events, and organizing more than 20 screening activities reaching 1,000 people in various Saint Lucian communities. She also commended the introduction of the I-Screen app which facilitates healthcare professionals in collecting vital health data and enhances evidence-based practices.

“I am also delighted to learn that the two-day workshop led by the first and second cohorts of seed instructors has been completed successfully,” Ambassador Su said. “I’d like to commend you all for your dedication and commitment. Your hard work and fresh knowledge will undoubtedly benefit your other colleagues in the community health centres in the future.”

Ambassador Su congratulated the six seed instructors who will be travelling to Taiwan for the intensive six-week training programme. She assured them that Cathay General Hospital has been the beacon of quality healthcare with extensive professionalism for the past 30 years in Taiwan and will continue to make its contribution in Saint Lucia.

“I’m sure you will find the workshop in Taiwan most useful, both in sharing your knowledge on the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases, as well as exploring our healthcare system and operation in Taiwan,” she explained.

Hon. Moses Jn. Baptiste, Minister for Health, Wellness and Elderly Affairs, thanked all the seed instructors for learning new methods and for sharing that new knowledge with their peers to strengthen the local healthcare system. He also commended the Government and people of Taiwan for the tremendous support they continue to provide towards enhancing Saint Lucia’s healthcare sector.

He noted that the project is very important, especially given the high mortality rates of non-communicable diseases in Saint Lucia, how they impact productivity, and the costs they continue to incur.

“Every year, a rough estimate takes us to about $450 million just to render health services at our hospitals and so on,” Hon. Jn. Baptiste said. “If you have to put all of this together, you will get above $450 million a year. We are trying our very best as a government to continue, within our limitations, increase the amount of resources that we give to the health sector. You would have heard in this year’s Estimates that figure has reached $202 million to the Ministry of Health, the highest ever in the history of Saint Lucia.”    

Dr. Cheyi Su, delegation leader from Cathay General Hospital, commended Saint Lucia’s commitment and actions in advancing community health and preventative medicine.

“From Taiwan’s experience, we have come to understand that effective healthcare does not solely occur within the hospital walls, but also within the communities, through the spread of accurate health knowledge and early intervention,” he stated.

He added: “Since the project began, eleven seed instructors have completed training in Taiwan, and are now actively conducting training sessions to support chronic disease prevention, education, and management. This underscores not only the successful transfer of skills and knowledge, but also the foundation of a sustainable and locally-driven healthcare education system.”

The Capacity Building Project for the Prevention and Control of Metabolic Chronic Diseases forms part of the Framework Agreement on Technical Cooperation between the Republic of China (Taiwan) and Saint Lucia. The Memorandum of Understanding for the project was signed on March 2, 2023, while the project was officially launched in May 2023. The overall aim of the four-year project is to reduce the modifiable risk factors for the metabolic non-communicable diseases, and to improve the management and control of these diseases.