GEORGETOWN, Guyana – The Guyana-based Pan-Caribbean Partnership Against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP) Secretariat Friday said several Caribbean clinical health workers will assemble in Miami next week for a high-impact Strengthening HIV Prevention and Treatment Services Training Programme.
PANCAP said it is organising the September 17–19, event at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine is collaboration with the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine with support from the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) and The Global Fund.
“This isn’t just another training, it’s a strategic intervention to change the trajectory of HIV in our region,” said Dr. Wendy Telgt Emanuelson, Director of the PANCAP Coordination Unit (PCU).
“By mastering motivational interviewing techniques and applying the latest evidence-based approaches, our regional clinicians will become powerful change agents in their communities, particularly in reaching marginalised populations most in need of these services,” she added.
PANCAP said that the training programme will build on the groundbreaking PANCAP Learning Journey held earlier this year at Amsterdam’s renowned Public Health Service (GGD Amsterdam) and that next week’s event will further equip regional frontline healthcare providers with advanced skills in motivational interviewing (MI) and other cutting-edge clinical strategies.
It said that the Amsterdam session had demonstrated remarkable success in enhancing providers’ ability to engage high-risk populations in PrEP programmes and re-engage people living with HIV who have fallen out of care.
The training will assemble clinical leaders from several Caribbean countries including Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Anguilla, The British Virgin Islands, and the Dominican Republic.
PANCAP said that participants will include physicians, nurses, and community health specialists representing both public health systems and civil society organisations, ensuring comprehensive knowledge transfer across all levels of care.
It said this intensive capacity-building initiative comes at a critical juncture as the region works assiduously to overcome persistent challenges in reaching UNAIDS’ ambitious 95-95-95 prevention targets by 2030.
PCU’s Knowledge Management Coordinator, Dr. Shanti Singh Anthony, said the Amsterdam Learning Journey proved that when clinicians adopt patient-centred approaches, outcomes improve dramatically.
“This training on motivational interviewing will allow for a differentiated and client-centred approach to recruit, initiate and retain persons on HIV prevention and treatment services, helping us close gaps in the HIV care continuum and achieve the global targets.”
PANCAP said with Caribbean countries facing uneven progress toward HIV targets, this training addresses critical gaps in the regional HIV response.
It said the programme’s unique value lies in its “train-the-trainer” approach, ensuring participants can share their new skills with their colleagues back home. This creates sustainable capacity that will continue benefiting health systems throughout the region long after the Miami session concludes.
“This training programme is a critical step toward revitalising HIV prevention and treatment efforts in the Caribbean. By empowering clinicians with evidence-based tools, PANCAP and its partners aim to reduce new infections, improve retention in care, and accelerate progress toward ending AIDS as a regional public health threat by 2030.”
