Health survey on NMI kids a ‘success’

The survey to determine the health needs of children in the CNMI is finally over and, according to the facilitating groups, was a success in terms of achieving their goals during the actual survey and fieldwork.

Program coordinator Tayna Belyeu-Camacho said the survey achieved its goal of interviewing and measuring 420 children between the ages of six months to 10 years old in June and July.

She said the survey’s success was largely due to the great response that everyone in the community gave to the teams. Only fewer than 10 percent of the people approached by the teams declined to participate, and most families welcomed the teams to their homes.

The teams, made up of members of the Department of Public Health, NMC-CREES and the University of Hawaii, traveled from village to village and house to house, conducting the nutrition and health survey to help determine some of the health needs of the island’s children.

The teams visited the villages of Tanapag, San Roque, Capitol Hill, Garapan, Chalan Kanoa, Susupe, Kagman, San Vicente, Koblerville, Dandan, San Antonio, Gualo Rai, Navy Hill, Songsong on Rota, and San Jose on Tinian.

“After the home visit, the parents were given the results of the measurements taken and provided with a packet of educational materials about child health,” Belyeu-Camacho said.

When there were concerns regarding their findings, the survey group provided the parents with a referral to the Health Center for a follow-up visit.

“We would like to encourage all parents who were given referrals to visit a health center for these follow-up visits,” she said.

The University of Hawaii and NMC-CREES spent several days inputting some of the information on computers, for succeeding analysis that will be continued in Hawaii, said Camacho.

All the information is coded in such a way that no individuals can be identified and all the survey forms are kept locked up, so that no personal information is seen by anyone except the few people involved in the data analysis.

Staff from University of Hawaii expects to have some initial results within four months, which will be reported back to the Department of Public Health and NMC.

The information about the foods that the children eat will take longer to analyze, especially since some of the foods eaten in CNMI are not found elsewhere and nutritional information about them may be hard to find. Camacho said a similar study in Guam is collecting some information about local foods and these studies will work together to analyze the dietary data.

By early 2006, University of Hawaii team members plan to visit the CNMI to report on the results of the survey in more details. They will also continue to work with staff at DPH and NMC, Belyeu-Camacho said, to look at the relationship between the diet, health and other socio-economic and demographic factors of the CNMI population. This information will help DPH and NMC identify areas for nutrition and health programs and interventions.

Camacho said the entire team members would like to extend a final “Si Yuus Maase!” to all the people of Saipan, Rota and Tinian for their contribution to improving nutrition and health in the CNMI.

For more information regarding referrals, contact Belyeu-Camacho or Lynn Tenorio at 664-4030/3 at DPH.