Public Health in Fiji

Thanks for your ongoing support and interest of this project. 

Our project has a key goal of preventing health issues.  This can be done on a broad spectrum where we help educate and address common health issues in the region.

However, we also address what the issues are right now. For example if there is flu or a stomach virus moving around the district we can hone in on preventative and management measures. We can do this through workshops and  information brochures for adults and through fun interactive lessons with children.

We collate information from the district nurse and community health workers on a  monthly basis to ascertain the major health concerns for the last month in the region. Using this information, we then plan workshops and support processes to address these particular concerns.

For example if there are numerous issues with vomitting we address fundamentals of the WASH program.  This would look at topics such as handwashing, hydration and clean water.

Of course it is good to get out in front of these issues rather than waiting for the issues to arises.  This is where our data collection helps.  We can reflect on a years worth of data on health issues and see where there are patterns of issues arising.  For example if a particular month tends to be the start of the cold and flu season, we can start our preventative education topics before that month comes around. The goal is to reduce the number of cases by discussing the topics before they become an issue.

It's important for children as well as adults to understand potential health issues.  On Wednesday afternoons we support health clubs at a primary school.  Here our project team work with teachers to deliver information about health topics.  In doing this we ensure the students are well engaged through active learning, songs, crafts, and other activities.  It helps their understanding of the topics. 

Why is your support so important? Resources are vital for ensuring these programs can be effectively carried out. Having a brochure with health guidance for example can be useful for a range of people not just the person attending the workshop.  Interactive learning for children through making posters, sons and stories all help to spread the word on health topics.

We thank you for your valuable support and look forward to sharing our progress in our next report.