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Recommendations Post Conference

Recommendation 1
Establish a Comprehensive Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control Programme

  • Cervical Cancer is the most common female cancer in the Pacific, contributing to disease burden and causing more than 1,500 premature deaths per year in the region. These deaths can be prevented if pre-cancer status is detected and treated early. Primary and secondary prevention that are effective and practical for Pacific island settings should be pursued.
  • The Society made strong commitments to develop a Pacific-oriented guideline on Comprehensive Cervical Cancer Prevention to help countries address this problem. PSRH will embark on collaborating with governments and key partners in the region to pursue this agenda.
  • A multi-country Technical Working Group on Cervical Cancer Prevention will be coordinated by PSRH to oversee the development of this programme and facilitate its progress.

 
Recommendation 2
Support Health Workforce Development in Obstetrics and Gynaecology

  • The shortage of health workforce in midwifery and obstetrics is a long-standing problem in the Pacific and affects the quality of service delivery in maternal-newborn care. The issue needs to be positioned high in the agenda of development and in the discussions among governments and development partners.
  • PSRH is well-positioned to engage in advocacy dialogue with donors and development partners to leverage resources and sponsorship for strengthening health institutions (midwifery schools, Fiji National University and UPNG) to produce adequate health workforce for the region.

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Recommendation 3
Strengthen the Capacity of Midwifery Training Institutions to produce increased numbers of Midwives to meet national targets
3.1 Shortage of midwives has been a long-standing problem that hinder the provision of essential maternal-newborn care at all levels of the health care system. Increasing the numbers of midwives to fill in the large numbers of vacancies is critical to make progress in quality of care especially at primary care level.
3.2 The Midwifery segment of PSRH Board will work with governments and development partners to reassess the situation in the Pacific and develop strategic plans that are practical and affordable in addressing the issues.
Recommendation 4
Increase Contraceptive uptake and Reduce the Unmet Need for family planning in the Region
4.1 Family planning is an effective intervention for reducing maternal deaths and should be strongly promoted to couples and individuals as an essential component of essential maternal health package.
4.2 PSRH will collaborate with countries, donors and development partners on innovative ways to reach more people with effective contraception, with a focus on long-acting methods of contraception.
 
Other important Recommendations
In addition to the above, the conference discussed other recommendations relevant to the needs of the region. The PSRH Secretariat will endeavor to mobilise partnerships with relevant institutions to partner in these areas. These include:

  1. Mainstream the prevention of gender-based violence as part of existing services for women and children. More specifically, screening for GBV using simple practical screening tools can be introduced in clinical settings at all levels of the health care system.
  2. Strengthen the practice of functional and effective maternal death reviews as an effective intervention for improving quality of care. PSRH can work with other partners to expand the application of standard methods and templates that can be modified, as appropriate.
  3. Explore the establishment of a ā€œsurgical skills laboratoryā€ at the two main medical training institutions ā€“ Fiji National University and University of Papua New Guinea. The aim is to ensure that graduating doctors are well skilled in conducting operations and perineal repairs.
  4. Work in partnership with Ministries of Education in selected countries to support the development of a position statement on the need to incorporate Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Education as a compulsory subject in the school system.
Stories

Training Remote Communities

Julian Mandof is a nurse from April River Sub-Health Centre which is located in the very remote part of the Ambuti District in the East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea. The health centre looks after 3162 people. This year, she is studying to be a midwife at the University of Goroka. There is no road to the health centre

Stories

Ultrasound Scan Workshop

RANZCOG/PSRH Basic and Advanced O&G Ultrasound training. Learning Outcomes for Basic and Advanced O&G Ultrasound trainingƂĀ include: 1. Increased knowledge and skills in how to use the machine, orientation, optimising image and getting the measurements right 2. Increased knowledge of Basic Fetal Anatomy 3.

Stories

Action needed to prevent cervical cancer

In the June issue of the Pacific Journal of Reproductive Health, Dr Rufina Latu in an editorial, wrote:

ā€œIn the Pacific, there is a need to establish simple, practical and yet cost-effective cancer control programmes. We need to work with experts and key departments to set standards, promote surveillance, encourageĀ evidence-basedĀ prevention, early detection and treatment, and palliative care tailored to different country settings and resource capacities. If well-planned, it is possible to establish a comprehensive cancer programme designed to reduce the number of cancer cases and deaths, and improve quality of life for cancer patients, through a systematic and equitable implementation of evidence-based strategies for prevention, early detection, diagnosis, treatment and palliation, making the best use of available resources in a multi- disciplinary participatory approach.ā€Ā Ā The full article can be readĀ here
Stories

Fantastic Programme for The 12th PSRH Conference in Vanuatu

If you are not coming to the 12th PSRH Conference in Port Vila, then you will be missing out on a lot of fundamentals in professional development.Are you coming to the conference?
Dr Rufina Latu and her team in Prof Caroline Homer and Prof Glen Mola has put together a scientific programme that the PSRH Board are immensely proud of.
The copy of the programme can be viewed andĀ downloaded from here
The Local Organising Committee led by Dr Errollyn Tungu and Midwife Apisai TokonĀ have put together logistical support on the ground to support a large number of delegates descending on Port Vila. In fact, a large number of colleagues from the Solomon Islands have already started arriving. Errollyn has also put together a range of socialĀ events that the participants may choose to engage in while in picturesque Port Vila.
However, it in not too late to register. Ā Register NOW
In welcoming the delegates to Vanuatu, the Hon Minister of Health Jerome Ludvaune has this to say:
ā€œI would like to welcome all country delegates and Pacific leaders in the area of reproductive health to Vanuatu. We have much work to do to improve reproductive health in the region. Your discussions,Ā deliberations and recommendations will no doubt assist governments in the region including Vanuatu to accelerate progress. I understand this conference has gathered a rich mix of health professionals ā€“ including professors, specialists, doctors, midwives, nurses, researchers, public health specialists, program managers and so forth. I am pleased that our own Vanuatu health professionals are actively involved and will benefit from discussions to strengthen our own servicesĀ andĀ programs in reproductive health and maternity care.ā€
All accepted abstracts have been published in theĀ June 2017 issueĀ of the Pacific Journal of Reproductive Health.
We look forward to welcoming you all to Port Vila.

News

New PSRH Board elected

A new Board was elected at the recent Biennial General Meeting for the years 2017-2019.

News

PEMNeT lands in the Cook Islands

The PEMNet training for the doctors, nurses and midwives in the Cook Islands started soon after the PEMNeT Train-the-Trainers