The Ministry of Health has called for an end to the stigma associated with leprosy as Saint Lucia records new cases of the disease.
In 2023, the Ministry of Health, Wellness, and Elderly Affairs registered 11 new cases.
And at the start of 2024, Saint Lucia has already diagnosed new cases.
The disclosure came as the country prepared to observe World Leprosy
Day on January 28, 2024.
The theme for 2024 is “Ending Stigma, Embracing Dignity”.
In a statement ahead of the observance, Community Dermatologist Katurah Edwin-Tobias explained that leprosy has an average 5-year incubation period.
As a result, someone could be infected but not show any signs how any signs for up to five years.
Her complete statement appears below:
She says we may sit beside someone in the bus and seeing this someone hands and skin we may think this someone has leprosy. This is not stigma. This is normal reaction.
She should say what to do if you are sitting beside a person you think has leprosy.