Human Resources for Health (HRH)

Introduction

A priority request of PIHOA members is to build local capacity and support/expand health workforce development opportunities. Guided by the Nalap Island Declaration and Nalap HRH Action Plan 2006, PIHOA continues to focus on identifying new and strengthening existing health workforce training opportunities, including linkages with the University of Guam (UOG), University of Hawai’i (UH), Fiji National University (FNU), and the six USAPI community colleges – all accredited regional institutions of higher learning, to ensure longer-term fostering of local expertise necessary for adapting and/or creating clinical and public health systems that are responsive, context and resource-appropriate, and resilient to existing and emerging health threats.

Current Activities

Current HRH efforts include delivery of: 1) a pre-med/pre-dentistry training program – Doctors and Dentists for Tomorrow – at the College of Micronesia–FSM (COM-FSM); 2) two-year Nurse Practitioners Training Program in the RMI in partnership with the RMI Ministry of Health and Human Services, Fiji National University (FNU), and the College of the Marshall Islands (CMI); 3) Human Resource Management (HRM) Strengthening Program for health agencies in American Samoa, FSM and RMI; and, 4) Pacific Basin Public Health Training Center (PBPHTC) Continuing Professional Development (CPD) program with the University of Arizona School of Public Health for the FSM public health workforce based at COM-FSM. PIHOA continues to partner with UH’s John A. Burns School Medicine and UOG’s Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) to assist in strengthening the Nursing Program at COM-FSM and establishing/enhancing Associate and Certificate of Public Health Degree Programs at COM-FSM, Palau Community College (PCC), and CMI. PIHOA also played a supportive role in the development and delivery of the Bachelors in Public Health Nursing Program at PCC.

PIHOA continues to foster strong collaborative partnership with the Pacific Islands Primary Care Association (PIPCA) to support Pacific regional professional organizations such as the American Pacific Nursing Leaders Council (APNLC), Pacific Basin Medical Association (PBMA), Pacific Basin Dental Association (PBDA), the Pacific Basin Pharmacy Chiefs Association (PBPCA), the Northern Pacific Environmental Health Association (NPEHA), and the new Pacific Basin Public Health Association (PBPHA).

Contact

Emi Chutaro, MsC

Executive Director

Email: emic@pihoa.org