Gleaner reporters win three PAHO regional awards

published: Wednesday | November 10, 2004

THREE GLEANER journalists, Avia Ustanny, Patricia Watson and Trudy Simpson, were on the weekend awarded regional prizes at the Pan-American Health Organisation's (PAHO) 12th Caribbean Media Awards for Excellence in Health Journalism held in Barbados last Friday.

At the Sherbourne Confer-ence Centre in Barbados, Ms. Ustanny got the award for Best News Story published in the print media for her story, entitled, 'Battered Boys'. Ms. Watson and Ms. Simpson won prizes for the Best Newspaper Feature on HIV/AIDS for a series of stories in 'Breaking the Silence Dispelling the Myths about HIV and AIDS'.

In addition, Erica James-King, formerly attached to The Gleaner's Western Bureau, was among journalists who received special mention for articles which highlighted a number of health and developmental challenges, including water-borne diseases and HIV/AIDS.

All awardees received airline tickets courtesy of BWIA, cash prizes courtesy of Sagicor and plaques or certificates from PAHO.

AWARDS AND CERTIFICATES

Regional winners came from Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Barbados, Belize and Guyana and for the first time this year, countries from the Dutch-speaking Caribbean, namely Suriname and St. Maarten. Awards and certificates of merit went to 15 journalists overall.

Guest speaker, Jamaica's Minister of Finance Dr. Omar Davies, urged media to do more to ensure that members of the public be more informed and that information given to the public is relevant and issued in a way the public can understand.

The awards are first judged at the local level in each country. Short-listed articles are then sent to PAHO's regional judging panel, headed by Kathleen Drayton. In her report, Ms. Drayton said the entries were of a high standard and addressed critical issues such as poverty and HIV.

PAHO also said that in the coming year, a special award will be implemented to recognise media coverage of Hurricane Ivan.