The Trinidad-based Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) is urging people in the region to remember that despite the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, they must be mindful that other public health threats still exist.

CARPHA executive director Dr Joy St John, in a message in observance of Caribbean Mosquito Awareness Week 2020, noted that mosquito-borne diseases, such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika, have placed an additional burden on the region’s health care systems, and negatively impact social and economic development.

“As individuals and communities, we each have a role to play in preventing an upsurge of mosquito-borne diseases,” she added.

Head of Vector-Borne Diseases at CARPHA Dr Laura-Lee Boodram said that during 2019 the Caribbean region experienced another outbreak of dengue, with many member states reporting an increase in the number of severe and hospitalised cases.