Health Minister Senator Lisa Cummins is urging Barbadians to make movement and healthier choices part of their everyday lives, saying the goal should be to keep people out of the healthcare system except when medical care is absolutely necessary.
Cummins made the call on the sidelines of Move Barbados’ “Every Body in Motion”, a free National Day of Movement held on Saturday at Queen’s Park, where families and members of the public took part in activities promoting health and wellness.
“I think you’ve heard the Ministry of Health talking and the government overall talking about building new facilities and so there’s the expansion of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, there is a polyclinic rebuild and expansion…but if, in the Ministry of Health, we have our way, we want to keep people out of those facilities for the most part except in extreme circumstances,” she said.
Cummins said initiatives such as the movement day and Healthy Living Expo were important in encouraging Barbadians to take greater responsibility for their health.
“That’s really where healthy living comes in, and that’s where initiatives like this one that we have in partnership with the team here come in. Keeping people healthy, keeping people exposed to things they want to eat,” she said.
The Minister said one of the key messages from the event was that physical activity did not necessarily require strenuous exercise.
“One of the things about today that was really interesting, aside from the various booths that are here, it’s about helping Barbadians to understand that movement is not just big hikes or big heavy lifting, gym workouts, and that kind of thing,” Cummins said.
“It’s sometimes just moving from desk to desk internal to your office. Sometimes it’s walking up the stairs as opposed to taking the elevator.”
Cummins said the government wanted healthy habits to become part of Barbadians’ daily routines.
“We want to be able to inculcate in Barbadians on everyday for everyday purposes – move. Eat healthy, make responsible choices, and get involved,” she said.
She pointed to the range of activities and vendors at the event, including those promoting plant-based foods, as examples of how healthier living could be incorporated into everyday life.
Cummins also noted the growing number of businesses focused on health and wellness.
“When you look across the landscape of Queens Park today, you see a lot of people who are getting into [health and wellness] businesses.”
She said the response demonstrated that there was demand for healthier lifestyles but stressed that more work was needed.
“Overall the families are responding, the public, the communities are responding, but there’s always more to do because we have the highest incidence of disease burden coming from non-communicable diseases,” Cummins said.
“A lot of those things are completely avoidable by people just living healthier and making better choices.”
