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Caribbean Islands Health and Welfare
In the 1980s, health care in the Cayman Islands compared
favorably with the situation found elsewhere in the Commonwealth
Caribbean. Mirroring a pattern seen in developed societies, the
major causes of death were noncommunicable diseases, especially
those of the circulatory system. Ninety percent of children were
immunized against diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, and poliomyelitis
as of 1984. Increased attention was given to environmental health
issues in the wake of the economic growth that occurred in the late
1970s. Grand Cayman had a privately operated desalination plant
that provided high-quality water. Little Cayman and Cayman Brac
employed a cistern and groundwater supply combination. Despite the
generally positive picture, health officials were concerned with a
growing substance abuse problem, inadequate mental health care, and
an absence of nursing homes. As of December 1986, the Cayman
Islands had reported one case of acquired immune deficiency
syndrome (AIDS).
Inpatient and outpatient services were available at two
government-administered hospitals on Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac;
these institutions contained a total of sixty-six beds in 1984.
Maternal and child care, immunizations, and routine nursing care
were also available through six district clinics. The islands had
sixteen physicians in 1984, approximately 1 for every 800 citizens.
Some of the doctors were government medical officers provided by
the British. The islands also had fifty-five nurses and eleven
midwives.
The government provided some social services, but most
islanders depended on the churches and other voluntary community
groups for assistance. State pensions did not exist in the mid1980s .
As in the Cayman Islands, noncommunicable diseases were the
major causes of death in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Despite this
similarity, health conditions were generally poorer in the Turks
and Caicos. The Turks and Caicos had a relatively high level of
leprosy, estimated at 5 cases per 1,000 population in the early
1980s. The territory was also concerned with the spread of malaria
by Haitian workers and increased drug addiction. In 1984 about 60
percent of children under one year of age were immunized against
diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, and poliomyelitis. The Turks and
Caicos lacked a public piped water system; as a result, the vast
majority of the population relied on rainwater roof catchments and
storage cisterns. This had contributed to an enormous mosquito
population and sporadic Aëdes aegypti infestations. As of
December 1986, there were two reported cases of AIDS.
The Turks and Caicos had a thirty-bed general hospital on Grand
Turk Island and twelve primary care health clinics scattered
throughout the territory. There was 1 doctor for roughly every
2,000 citizens. As in the Cayman Islands, the British government
provided medical officers. The Turks and Caicos had twelve nurses
and eleven midwives. Most social services were provided by the
churches.
Data as of November 1987
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