REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The Health Ministry has deployed 347 medical professionals, consisting of doctors, nurses, laboratory, and pharmacy experts, in remote and border areas in 18 provinces and 40 districts throughout Indonesia.

Based on a press release received in Jakarta on Monday, the health professionals consist of 13 general practitioners, 10 dentists, 55 nurses, 55 midwives, 47 public health workers, 38 environmental health workers, 46 medical laboratory technologists, 48 nutritionists, and 35 pharmaceutical personnel.

All medical personnel were divided into 60 teams which were deployed in 60 community health centers in remote, very remote and underdeveloped regions, archipelago, and border areas during a two-year assignment.

The placement of the total of 347 health workers was the first generation under the 2017 Healthy Nusantara Program to meet health services in remote, outermost, and underdeveloped areas.

"Healthy Nusantara Program is a breakthrough effort to fulfill the needs of health professionals to improve access and quality of health services in community health centers in remote or very remote and underdeveloped regions, border areas, and islands," Head of Agency for Development and Empowerment of Human Resources in the Health Field of Health Ministry, Usman Sumantri, stated.

Currently, the ministry is conducting a series of written tests and interviews for candidates of the second generation of the 2017 Healthy Nusantara Program, while the selection stage for the third generation is planned to be carried out in late July or early Aug.

Healthy Nusantara Program has been conducted since 2015 with the placement of 694 health workers, which were divided into 120 teams spread across 120 community health centers in 15 provinces and 48 districts.

While in 2016, as many as 728 health workers were deployed in 131 teams spread over 131 community health centers in 26 provinces and 60 districts.

The goal of Healthy Nusantara program was the fulfillment of the number and types of health professionals in accordance with the standards implemented in health centers and the realization of the strengthening and fulfillment of health service needs.

Sumantri noted that the implementation of the program required cross-cutting support, including from provincial and district/city governments and other stakeholders.

"District heads are expected to provide support for the success of the Healthy Nusantara Program, including ensuring the safety and security of health personnel, ensuring decent facilities, issuing Practice License, sending officers to hand over medical personnel, and financing officers in the framework of picking up and placement of medical personnel to the target areas," Sumantri remarked. 

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