Lack of funds should not compromise health care

Despite limited resources, hospitals in various islands in the Pacific can still provide adequate health care as long as priorities are clearly defined and government leaders make a commitment to ensure that there’s a substantial budget on public health, said Kathleen L. Fritsch, a nurse educator and consultant in the World Health Organization.

For the past years the 10 Pacific Islands have been experiencing similar problems such as limited quantity of supplies, lack of adequate resources and management leadership.

“You have to clearly define what you need and submit a coherent proposal to management. They have to know that without this, we won’t run a safe health care system,” Fritsch told delegates of the American Pacific Nursing Leaders Council Conference.

At the same time, nurses have an important role to play in creatively increasing the community’s social responsibility and self-sufficiency.

In the Marshall Islands, the churches have been helping in organizing the community to provide additional resources.

“Plan ahead, clearly define your priorities so that you can live within the limited resources,” said Fritsch.

Another common problem in the Pacific is the difficulty in attracting people to go into the nursing profession. The CNMI and Palau’s community colleges are now offering short-term nursing courses while in Pohnpei, there has been an ongoing campaign to entice the youth to join the nursing profession.

In selling the nursing profession to the young people, Fritsch advises health officials to make use of creative social marketing approach. Many of the island governments are losing their nurses who have chosen to migrate to other countries for better living and working conditions.

“There must be incentives for them to stay, to be happy and enjoy their work,” she added. She noted that the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand are also having the same problem of declining number of people taking the nursing course. New Zealand has been recruiting nurses from Pacific Islands.

Since the island governments share the same problem of limited financial resources, campaign for preventive health care is still the best solution that health experts can offer.

Instead of spending a big chunk of the money on the expensive hospital equipment such as acquiring several renal dialysis, the community must work together in carrying out a proper nutrition or health campaign as Pacific Islanders suffer the same type of illness — heart disease, hypertension and diabetes.