Presidential candidate in the upcoming Trinidad and Tobago National Nursing Association elections, Letitia Cox, toured several health facilities in Tobago on Thursday, meeting with nurses and other healthcare professionals as part of her campaign.
The visit comes as the current TTNNA President, Idi Stewart, prepares to step down after 10 years of leadership, paving the way for a new generation of leaders.
Ms Cox and her team, “The Advocates”, are making sure that nurses in Tobago know that their concerns are important as she prepares to contest the September 9th elections.
With salary negotiations as part of her new mandate, she said her overall vision extends beyond remuneration packages.
“We’re looking for partnerships for housing. We’re looking for partnerships to ensure education grants. We’re looking for partnerships to ensure that, aye, you can get your car. So you can actually afford to do all the things you need to do with the money that you have.”
Ms Cox highlighted the challenges many nurses face in qualifying for home financing and said efforts are being made to explore solutions tailored to nurses across different income levels.
“So we want to have an arrangement, whether it be with the government or a private developer or financier, where we have a rent-to-own initiative where we can turn that rent into an investment into your mortgage.”
Ms Cox also noted that nurses’ mental health is another area being addressed by her team.
“Right now if you go on our page, The Real Advocates, you can see tips every Tuesday about caring for the caregiver, taking care of your wellness – those things will be done, sessions like that, having sessions in the hospital sponsored by the association to take care of our healthcare givers.”