UK public health expert secures CMO job
(CNS): Dr Nick Gent has been appointed as Cayman’s new chief medical officer after an open recruitment process by the Ministry of Health and Wellness, for which there were no local applicants, officials have confirmed. The new CMO, who will start on 3 October, has over 30 years of public health experience, including his most recent post as senior medical adviser/consultant in public health with the UK Health Security Agency.
He has previously worked as public health director in district public health services and served as an executive member for health service authorities within the UK National Health Service with responsibility for public health, health protection and commissioning a wide range of healthcare services, officials said.
Chief Officer Nellie Pouchie noted his significant experience as she welcomed him to his new job. “The Ministry of Health and Wellness is pleased to have attained someone of Dr Gent’s calibre for the chief medical officer position. We look forward to working with him as the ministry continues its focus on charting a new strategic direction for healthcare in the Cayman Islands, including strengthening public health at the national level,” she added.
Dr Gent’s appointment was announced at a press briefing where Health Minister Sabrina Turner revealed plans by her ministry to separate the Public Health Department from the Health Services Authority and the start of a business case to examine that process.
In a press release about his appointment, Dr Gent said there were many interesting opportunities for the development of health services and the public health system in the Cayman Islands. “I am looking forward to working with the many highly skilled and experienced colleagues throughout the country to develop these opportunities,” he said.
Deputy Governor Franz Manderson said Dr Gent would be a welcome addition to the civil service and his career history and qualifications made him well suited for the role. “We look forward to his contributions to the Ministry of Health and Wellness, and by extension to the Government and people of Cayman Islands,” he said.
Dr Gent will take over from the interim CMO, Dr Autalia Newton, who has acted in the post for the last nine months following the departure of Dr John Lee at the end of 2021.
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Category: Health, Medical Health
The introduction of the HIV Aids to our island during the late 1960″s and early 1970’s was not detected and did surface in our community as common knowledge and discussions until wide scale sexual misconduct begin to become a household discussion
When those discussions started to take place in our homes, our Public Health Department was established into a department to monitor, track and record sexual transmitted deseases
The statics of these diseases was deemed confidential and only available to the Health Services Public Health Department staff and the number of affected cases revealing just the number of persons affected, published or available to persons making inquiring
Today, we find less interest and little or no effort from our Health Services Public Health Department to research, test and publish these statistics, meaning that we as a country have no idea what the state of our country’s public health really looks like, except for the number of covid related illnesses
https://www.caymancompass.com/2022/09/01/public-health-to-separate-from-hsa-become-independent-entity/
I call on our government and the Minister of Health to invest in self testing HIV Aids Kits to offer the public to get a handle on the true picture of our country’s health
https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/basics/hiv-testing/hiv-self-tests.html
I also call on our government to be pro-active and to stop being re-active to our countries state of health by encouraging HIV Aids and Sexual Transmitted Disease Testing and Research and to keep the public properly informed with these Statistics
Interesting article about this man fromBolton.
https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/news/17324196.bolton-school-old-boy-dr-nick-gent-talks-salisbury-nerve-agent-attack/
Poor bloke. He doesn’t know the mess he is walking in to. The imbeciles prior to him have left such an outstanding shambles that he will spend most of his time in clean-up mode. I wish him all the best. At least now we have a qualified person onboard! Good luck, Sir.
Out of the UK NHS? If you want bureaucratic medicine. . . see NHS!
thank god it is an experienced expat with real qualifications
Why all the skepticism? Ossie (Chairman of HSA Board) will make him feel welcome right from the get go!
Any Medical Officer or government official that orders and demands people to take medical treatments or Covid vaccines, I DO NOT TRUST! Don’t care how much education he or she has – I CALL MY OWN SHOTS!
@6:42Am..What if Trump asked you?
Didnt Biden take all the credit for rolling out the vaccines and ending the pandemic?
Uh… No! Read more balanced info.
He said it was a ‘disease of the unvaccinated’ which was total BS as time has proven.
I demand that you have your broken arm X-rayed and put in a cast.
Or rather his head.
Seconding the comment about another nephrologist – the pain management team desperately needs to be expanded. Dr Nichols is amazing but one Dr and one nurse does not a department make…
Kenneth Bryan you are and utter disgrace, your treatment of interim CMO Dr Newton was disrespectful and demeaning and unwarranted. This no doubt led to her not taking this post and these islands loosing a person of her caliber and expertise.What a real piece of Shite eh You and your political minder Chris need to go now.
I do trust that Dr. Gent employs a more suitable approach to all medical related areas locally than the past couple of CMO’s that we have had to endure (Newton, Lee). Need I remind readers of Lee’s handling of the Doctors Express fiasco?
5.40pm So you had to “endure” Dr Lee’s outstanding handling of the Covid epidemic.The Doctor’s Express debacle was for sure engineered by a local jealous of their success and leant on Dr Lee to achieve his aims.
While Ms. Turner appears to be in the hiring mode I wonder if she would consider recruiting another Nephrologist ( a specialist who takes care of patients with kidney issues). I think Dr. Nelson could use some help and it would greatly benefit the patients with kidney problems. Ms. Turner if you read CNS or if anyone who knows her well enough reads this SOS please pass this message on to her, I would appreciate it as would the many patients who Dr. Nelson attends to on a monthly basis.a waiting with bated breath.
You’re just experiencing what everyone in Canada and the UK experience everyday in healthcare. Stand in line and wait.
And in the US. Appointments with many Dr’s at the Cleveland Clinic are booked for months. For me – Allergy (8 months); Dermatology (6 months); Pulmonary (3 months).
31 @ 5:13 pm – Bravo! There has never been enough nephrology specialists here. Just observe the number of dialyses performed each week (including some cruise visitors) and that will give an idea of the need for broader nephrology support. It’s been that way since my late mother was a CKD patient there over 20 years ago.
Also, the recent census revealed additional reasons why more focus should be placed towards more nephrologists. Diabetes is a main cause of kidney disease and it’s fiercely prevalent in Cayman.
Sadly, I would venture to propose that, for the foreseeable future, we will be more successful in treating such diseases rather than enforcing lifestyle changes to prevent them.
I’ll take this opportunity to say that Dr. Nelson is a star!
I agree… Lifestyle changes would be a better solution for future generations than trying to ‘fix/treat’ poor personal choices. A look at all the Caymanian Ministers is a telling photo for how NOT TO be an example for how to be personally responsible. Very sad how irresponsible the CIG is.
Much prayer needed for him.
Make sure and ban KB from associating with him.
Why not hire one of the many qualified Caymanians for this post? Keep churning out these expats. In and out revolving door.
There are None!
Here we go, hire local as in hire more Jamaicans
The HSA unofficial policy is to only hire Jamaicans
and cubans
4.09pm Name them and list all their qualifications and experience.
crickets…
@4:09pm I think it was made clear that no Caymanian applied..you can’t force someone to take a job if they don’t want it.
Spoken to any local hotels recently?
Did you read the article? There were no local applicants. Troll
CG. The question should be did any caymanians apply for this Post. I am sure the answer is no.
Read the article …. there were no local applicants, “qualified or otherwise” …
You really cant fix stupid, can you? Read the article. No one applied. Your prejudices are blinding to simple reading.
Politics….
Poor guy, he doesn’t realise what he’s coming into and the low quality of the people he will have to work with.
You can’t take the train home bloke but you sure can fly back – Good bye! et al.
so why is he coming?
Kerching!!!!!!!!
If you’re an expat and Cayman is such a bad place, why are you here ???
We’ve learned to take care of ourselves. We got educated, worked hard, didn’t look for Gov’t handouts.
6:46, To make it betterer and not run it into the ground.
6:46, pray tell where Cayman would be without ex-pats and foreign business?
You do realize without them Cayman would fold overnight right and your NAU payments would cease?
Then what would you do? Run to Kenneth or Chris?
3:13 funny you say that. Dr Newton says the opposite. Poor you.