Madang Provincial Health Authority (MPHA) partners with NGO’s to continue advocating vaccination and awareness to minimize the spread of Covid-19 throughout Madang Province.
A two weeks workshop was carried out in Madang lodge with the theme, ‘Risk Communication and Community Engagement’ under the initiative of the Madang Provincial Health Authority, UNICEF, F.H.I-360 and Save the Children collaborating to assist health workers in the rural clinics to carry out awareness on Covid-19.
More than fifty plus community health workers throughout Madang Province took part in the training to enable them to advocate on the ‘new normal’ or ‘niupla pasin’ in place and also boost vaccination rate in their communities.
According to Assistant Director for Public Health and Policy Program for Madang Provincial Health Authority, Paul Mabong says, this workshop is purposely to train community health workers to carry out covid-19 awareness and be advocates in their communities.
“The percentage rate of vaccination in the province is very low, as more people are hesitant to get vaccinated and the threats made against health workers has caused this issue.”
He stressed that, most health workers are facing the same issue of threats as social media posts continues to instigate more conspiracy theories against covid-19 vaccination.
Mabong says, there were several trainings being hosted prior to this training with the aim to break barriers against vaccination in communities of Madang province.