Health officers sent to needy village

Health officers sent to needy village

TANGERANG (JP): The city administration of Tangerang plans to
deploy 36 health officers in the city's least developed villages,
an official said yesterday.

Tangerang Mayor Djakaria Machmud said that the presence of the
officers is expected to help local residents deal with their
health problems.

"In preparation for the deployment, the 36 officers took part
in a two-day training course ended yesterday," Machmud said.

The 36 officers consist of medical workers and heads of a
number of public health centers (Puskesmas), heads of local
health offices, representatives of the local offices of the
National Family Planning Board (BKKBN) and heads of local welfare
affairs offices.

Machmud reiterated that the deployment of the officers is part
of Tangerang mayoralty's programs to expand its health services
through the active involvement of local residents.

The training was designed to enable the officers to develop
health centers in the least developed villages, including through
the establishment of health posts to help local people get easier
access to medical services, he said.

Similar activities, the mayor said, have so far been conducted
in a number of other villages, including Cikokol market, in the
form of a medical hall for nearby traders.

Most local traders who were visited by The Jakarta Post
yesterday were happy with the establishment of their medical
facility.

"We are no longer forced to travel far away to look for
hospitals whenever one of us needs medical services," Djamhuri,
one of the traders, said.

After the establishment of the medical hall, the traders still
are in need of quick service at reasonable prices. "You know how
it is for small-scale traders like us," said Mulyadi, another
vegetable seller, who claimed to have worked at the market over
the last few years. (hhr)