Commonwealth Health Partnerships 2015 187 KEY FACTS Joined Commonwealth: 1962 Population: 2,784,000 (2013) GDP p.c. growth: 0.5% p.a. 1990–2012 GNI p.c.: US$5,220 (2013) UN HDI 2014: World ranking 96 Life expectancy: 74 years (2013) Under-five mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 17 (2013) Largest contribution to mortality: Cardiovascular diseases Government health expenditure: 3.3% of GDP (2012) General information Jamaica, whose name comes from the Arawak Xaymaca, meaning ‘Land of Wood and Water’, lies south of Cuba and west of Haiti. Climate: Tropical at the coast (22–34°C), with fresh sea breezes; markedly cooler in the mountains. Rainfall ranges from 1,500 mm p.a. in Kingston to 3,850 mm p.a. in Port Antonio. Jamaica lies in the hurricane zone. Environment: The most significant environmental issues are deforestation; pollution of coastal waters by industrial waste, sewage and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; and air pollution in Kingston due to vehicle emissions. Population: 2,784,000 (2013); 54 per cent of people live in urban areas. The population growth rate stood at 0.7 per cent p.a. between the years of 1990 and 2013, but emigration (principally to the UK, Canada and the USA) has been significant for two generations. In 2013 the birth rate was 18 per 1,000 people (35 in 1970) and life expectancy was 74 years (68 in 1970). Economy: Jamaica is classified as an upper-middle-income economy by the World Bank. Health Child and maternal health: The rate of infant mortality in Jamaica was 14 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2013, with an under-five mortality rate of 17 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2013. The under-five mortality rate in Jamaica has fallen steadily since the early 1990s; however, it is not yet in line with the target of ten deaths per 1,000 live births, as defined by Millennium Development Goal 4 (MDG 4). In 2012 the three most prominent known causes of death for children below the age of five years were prematurity (25 per cent), congenital anomalies (21 per cent) and intrapartum-related complications (nine per cent). Other contributory causes were acute respiratory infections (eight per cent), neonatal sepsis (seven per cent), injuries (seven per cent), diarrhoea (two per cent) and HIV/AIDS (one per cent). In 2013 Jamaica had an adjusted maternal mortality ratio of 80 deaths per 100,000 live births (this figure was estimated at 110 deaths per 100,000 by UN agencies/World Bank in 2010). Burden of disease: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Jamaica accounted for an estimated 79 per cent of all mortality in 2012. In 2012 the most prevalent NCDs were cardiovascular diseases (37 per cent). Cancer, diabetes and non-communicable variants of respiratory diseases contributed 17 per cent, 11 per cent and three per cent to total mortality, respectively (2012). Injuries accounted for seven per cent of deaths in 2012. Communicable diseases along with maternal, perinatal and nutritional conditions accounted for an estimated 14 per cent of all mortality in Jamaica in 2012. The prevalence of HIV in Jamaica, as a percentage of people aged 15–49 years, was 1.8 per cent in 2012. Levels of HIV in the country peaked in the late 1990s. Jamaica is a non-endemic country for malaria. Estimated incidence of tuberculosis (TB) decreased slightly in the period 1990–2013, showing considerable fluctuation, while estimated mortality (when mortality data excludes cases comorbid with HIV) from the disease remained consistent in the period 2007–13. The most commonly diagnosed mental illnesses in Jamaica are depression and schizophrenia. Health systems: In 2012 government expenditure on health was 3.3 per cent of GDP, equivalent to US$175 per capita. In the most recent survey, conducted between 1997 and 2009, there were 85 doctors, and 165 nurses and midwives per 100,000 people. Additionally, in 2012, 96 per cent of births were attended by qualified health staff and in 2013, 94 per cent of one-year-olds were immunised with one dose of measles. In 2012, 93 per cent of the Jamaican population had access to improved water sources and 80 per cent had access to adequate sanitation facilities. Jamaica
Commonwealth Health Partnerships 2015
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