Gov’t Reactivates 300,000 Health Services Posts to Improve Healthcare Services for Mothers, Children
Healthcare services at the Posyandu. (PR of Ministry of Health)
In a bid to provide healthcare services to all people throughout Indonesia, the Government Friday (05/13) has announced that it will improve premiere healthcare services by reactivating about 300 thousand integrated health services posts (Posyandu) throughout the country.
“It is hard for the Central Government and regional governments to provide healthcare services to more than 80 thousand villages and 514 regencies/cities in 34 provinces, if we only rely on the operating 10 thousand community health centers (Puskesmas). It is not enough to reach all people throughout Indonesia,” Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin said.
The Minister ensured that the Posyandu has great potential to strengthen Indonesia’s health system considering the number of units, skilled health workers, and qualified facilities.
In addition, rebranding and promotion on the Posyandu are parts of Indonesia’s health transformation, he continued.
“We will reactivate, redefine the Posyandu so that the management will be more systematic and gain support from the Central Government and regional governments in order to provide standard healthcare services to all people throughout Indonesia,” Budi added.
On that occasion, Budi said that the reactivation of the Posyandu amid COVID-19 is also a challenge considering the number of patients visiting the Posyandu during COVID-19 has decreased.
“Based on the report we have that the number of patients visiting the Posyandu has decreased by more than 70 percent,” the Minister added.
To that end, the Government through Ministry of Health will continue to work hard in improving target visitors at the Posyandu by providing a number of interesting, updated health programs that are oriented toward an improvement on clean and healthy lifestyle behavior as a future health investment.
Budi underscored that one of the programs prioritized by the Government through the Posyandu is immunization drive, especially for children affected by COVID-19 pandemic so that their immune system can be improved.
For the record, as many as 1.7 million Indonesians have not received complete basic immunizations in 2019-2021.
With the number of children not receiving complete basic immunizations, it is worried that it will have an impact on an increase in the number of cases of Immunization-Preventable Diseases (PD3I) and the Extraordinary Events (KLB) of the PD3I including as measles, rubella, and diphtheria in some regions.
In a bid to avoid community’s immunity gap, Ministry of Health will harmonize all immunization drives by periodically organizing the National Immunization Month for Children (BIAN). The first stage will be carried out in May 2022 in all provinces in the islands of Sumatra, Kalimantan, Nusa Tenggara, Maluku, and Papua. Meanwhile, the second stage will be carried out in August 2022 in all provinces in the islands of Java and Bali.
Furthermore, Budi said that the Ministry has collaborated with Ministry of Home Affairs and regional governments to call on all parents to bring their children to health facilities in order to receive immunization during the BIAN, adding that, he also expressed his optimism that support from all parties will improve Indonesia’s immunization coverage. (PR of Ministry of Health) (AP/MUR)
