Port Maria, St. Mary, was the site for Jamaica’s commemoration of Vaccination Week in the Americas 2026 with a Vaccination Outreach and Health Fair at the Giant Family Mart Car Park on Thursday, April 30.

The event offered the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccine, Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV), Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR) Vaccine, Hepatitis B Vaccine, Influenza (Flu) Vaccine and Diphtheria and Tetanus (DT) Vaccine.

In addition, there were blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, body mass index (BMI), HIV and syphilis tests.

Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)/World Health Organization (WHO) representative to Jamaica, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands, Ian Stein, told JIS News that Vaccination Week in the Americas is a decades-long observance.

“We are celebrating with the people of Jamaica and the Ministry of Health & Wellness Vaccination Week in the Americas, which is a continuation of decades of this type of promotion, encouraging people to come out and learn about vaccines and take vaccines for preventable diseases with particular emphasis on the HPV vaccine,” Mr. Stein said.

Pointing to the importance of vaccines, Mr. Stein said they not only prevent an individual from getting certain illnesses, they prevent the spread of that illness around communities.

“So it’s both helping ourselves and helping our community,” Mr. Stein said.

He stressed further that by Jamaicans getting vaccinated against vaccine-preventable diseases, they are also helping to keep the Caribbean and the Americas free from these illnesses.

Acting Director, Family Health Unit in the Ministry of Health & Wellness, Julia Rowe-Porter, added that Jamaica and the Caribbean are leaders in protecting their people from diseases, such as polio, measles and tetanus.

“These (are) diseases that you haven’t heard of in a while because our immunity is so high, our coverage rates are in the high 90s, and we want to keep it that way,” Dr. Rowe-Porter said.

She stated that vaccination is a high priority programme for Jamaica and the Health Ministry continues to spread the message that vaccines are safe, effective, and beneficial.

Medical Officer of Health for St. Mary, Dr. Tamara Henry-Gilpin, commented on the turnout of persons who visited the vaccination outreach and health fair inside the busy car park.

She explained that counselling services were also on offer for persons who were found to have any elevations from the number of screenings being performed, as well as nutrition support and referrals to services at the parish’s health centres.

A highlight of the day’s activities was an HPV Jingle competition which saw primary schools across the parish vying for a chance to win a laptop. Health districts also competed against each other.

In the end, Highgate Primary School and the Port Maria Health District were the victors for the day, each receiving a laptop from PAHO/WHO.