SDG: 3
Beneficiaries: 50 staff members
During the pandemic the Public Health Ordinance of Trinidad and Tobago stipulated the closure of fast-food outlets. This caused an added strain for many frontline workers many of whom were already working extended hours under great physical and psychological stress and now had the added burden of arranging meals for themselves every day to take to work. Our club was concerned about the mental health and well-being of our front liners and wanted to provide relief in a tangible way that would fill a real need; provide emotional support and boost staff morale. After discussion with the CEO of the Regional Health Authority we determined that providing meals was the best short-term intervention to achieve our objectives. Over a period of 4 weeks in the months May to June 2021, club members cooked dinners for the fifty mostly female staff members at the Augustus Long Hospital – a parallel Covid-19 healthcare facility. We also secured a further $5000 from RBC bank to provide 3 additional dinners for these workers. This relieved the workers the burden of preparing meals, allowed them to get a longer period of rest between shifts, gave them emotional support, boosted staff morale and ultimately improved overall mental health and well-being.
