The 4th annual Cayman Islands National Healthcare Conference will be held at The Ritz Carlton in Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands on October 17 – 19 2013. Registration opens Tuesday July 2nd, 2013 at: http://www.healthcareconference.ky/register.html

Continuing Medical Education (CME) Certificates will be available.

Cayman Islands Minister of Health, Osbourne Bodden, in announcing the dates for the healthcare Conference said, “The findings of our 2012 Healthy Nation survey have thrown into sharp focus that we are still leading unhealthy lifestyles, such as continuing to smoke, eating unhealthy foods and not participating in regular exercise.

“We therefore anticipate that the Healthcare Conference will help to inform the audience about ways in which they can improve their health. Targeting wellness in the workplace, it is hoped that the conference will go a long way to improving the health and wellbeing of all employees across industries.”

In speaking about the conference theme, ” Taking Care of Business: A Shared Approach to Workplace Wellness”, the Minister said, “The workplace is, after all, a location in which we spend a large part of our day, so it is an excellent place to focus our energies, health-wise. If we get Cayman leading a healthier lifestyle we hopefully cut down the prevalence of diseases such as high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease.  This will go a long way to reducing expenditure for the private and public sector in the long term.  We also need to address the serious situation of growing obesity in our young people and we hope that this conference will also lead to corrective action in that area and ensure that employers and our schools address this matter urgently.”

Lizzette Yearwood, the Cayman Islands Health Services Chief Executive Officer said, “Drawing on our experiences from previous conferences, as well as recent healthcare surveys that show the prevalence of non-communicable diseases in Cayman, we realised that this year’s conference ought to be as inclusive of as wide a section of the public as possible.”

Ms. Yearwood was emphasizing the conference was for everyone and not only for health care providers,

“We hope that everyone will see the relevance of the presentations and attend,” she added.

Jennifer Ahearn, Chief Officer in the Health Ministry announced there will also be Conference workshops under the title of “Info to Action” saying, “These sessions will present and expand on the theme in more detail, bringing together perspectives from a broad range of individuals, including healthcare providers, general practitioners, patients, and other stakeholders, in an attempt to build a bigger picture of health issues facing people in Cayman today.  The session results will then be presented to the delegates on the final day of the conference during an overview session.’