ADI Newsletter September 2022
What a whirlwind of a year it’s been so far. In this time of movement and momentum I am delighted to sit down with you and update you on what we've been up to so far. From adapting to the consistent healthcare challenges brought on by COVID-19, to launching one of our biggest supplementary immunisation activities yet- there is much ground to cover.
There has been a huge amount of growth in the last 12 months as we continue to collaborate with Provincial Health Authorities and local staff. As a PNG charity, we prioritise building a sustainable healthcare infrastructure from the ground up, inside out. This means passing on knowledge and training locals who live, speak and work in the provinces we operate within. Currently, we now have more than 30 local staff in PNG, and we hope to keep these numbers rising!
Working with the restrictions of the pandemic and global health workforce shortages has not been easy. It's been harder than ever to recruit volunteer doctors, but we are hopeful of this changing soon. With that being said, I could not be prouder of the work our incredible teams both in Australia and Papua New Guinea have put into achieving a healthier PNG. I extend my heartfelt gratitude to our partners, sponsors, friends, and supporters who continue to make our work possible.
Launch of Manus Supplementary Immunisation Activity (SIA)
We recently expanded our programs to Manus, the smallest province in PNG. On the 26th of May of this year, ADI launched the Supplementary Immunisation Activity (SIA) in Manus in partnership with the Provincial Health Authorities (PHA), WHO and Touching the Untouchables (TTU).
Children in rural Papua New Guinea do not see a doctor on the same basis as those in Australia, let alone receive routine vaccinations or immunisations, overall only 60% of children are vaccinated. Childhood vaccinations have been significantly curtailed by COVID. The SIA program was aimed at improving rates of routine immunisation Manus by delivering ‘catch up’ vaccine outreach activities province wide.
To celebrate the hallmark event, there were festivities and fanfare in the form of singing and dancing from local groups and cheering from community members. The event was attended by the public health director, Mr. Pokam as well as MPHA senior executive, and covered on the NBC television channel.
9 dedicated routine immunisation outreach patrols were undertaken across the Manus province in partnership between the Manus PHA, TTU, WHO and ADI. By the end of the SIA launch:
4,784 children were vaccinated
9,546 doses of routine immunisations were administered
88 communities across 6 LLGs were reached
In addition to routine immunisations, childhood wellbeing checks were also conducted by ADI staff and local health workers to kick-start the catch up program. The inaugural event kicked off outreach programs commencing from the 30th of May with ADI, TTU and MPHA outreach teams continue travelling to Bundralis and Pelipowai to deliver vaccines.
COVID-19 Vaccination Training in North Fly District
From August to September this year, ADI conducted training for healthcare workers in the North Fly district of Western Province. The training was designed to build the capacity of healthcare workers on COVID vaccinations to improve communication and increase vaccine uptake among the HCWs and the community. Training took a total of 5 days, and was deemed very successful.
Although Australia has been able to achieve one of the highest rates of COVID vaccination coverage in the world PNG still has one of the lowest. Our teams have been working incredibly hard to change this but there are massive challenges, the biggest of which being addressing the misinformation and superstition which supersedes mainstream healthcare advice, making much of the population very reluctant to vaccinate.
The training debunked myths surrounding vaccinations, and enlightened participants on COVID-19, its complications and how to manage patients and educate health care workers. Participants who were initially reluctant to get the vaccine experienced a shift in mentality following the training, getting their own vaccinations, and volunteering to advocate more on the vaccines to the public.
Upcoming Activities for the rest of 2022 and
beyond
We are looking forward to expanding on our work in Manus. For the rest of 2022 and into 2023, we will begin integrated outreach health patrols in Manus, and working with Manus PHA to deliver a range of health services to communities across Manus. In addition, we will also be working the PHA to deliver our first EMNC/FP trainings in Manus province.
In August, ADI held our family planning training in Western Province, West New Britain, and New Ireland. Training spanned over 5 days, covering family planning and contraception as well as a three-day practical session on Jadelle implant insertion and removals. A second round of early maternal natal care (EMNC) and family planning (FP) training are scheduled for later in 2022. ADI has been delivering this training since 2019 and to date, 193 workers have been trained.
