What we're doing in 2008
Programme Strategies:
1) Immunization of mothers and children is one of the key steps of the WHO/UNICEF Regional Child Survival Strategy. Continued EPI strengthening will be undertaken at a regional level and will include continued collaboration amoungst stakeholders through the PIPS mechanism. Capacity will be built via strengthening supervision and monitoring of country EPI programmes, encouraging and supporting staff training and pre-service curricula, ensuring effective planning processes which address the needs of the most marginalised, supporting introduction of new vaccines and investigating financial initiatives such as GAVI. Vaccine security will be ensured through the VII (Vaccine Independent Initiative). EPI Evidence Based Communication strategies will be used to improve communication by health care providers and increase client demand. 2) UNICEF will influence health policies in Kiribati, Vanuatu, and Solomon Islands and across the region by presenting evidence from a carefully evaluated essential package of interventions directed at maternal, neonatal and child health and introduced in selected areas during the early years of the new country programme. Using advocacy this evidence will persuade these countries to progressively implement the strategies nationwide and ensure budgetary support. The major strategy employed will be an essential package based on the 7 key interventions identified in the WHO/ UNICEF Regional Child Survival Strategy. These will be further strengthened by improvements in water, sanitation and hygiene practices, prevention of mother- to-child transmission of HIV, and child safety practices to reduce injuries. Delivery of basic and facility health services will be improved by integrated approaches. Emphasis will be placed on capacity building of health staff and family care and health practices will improve through implementation of community IMCI. Evidence-based communication will be used to improve community awareness and partnerships will be encouraged amoungst stakeholders. Implementing and coordination partners: A national partnership for child survival, led by the Ministry of Health will be established to coordinate planning for child survival actions at country level. Synchronisation of various child-health related strategies or programmes will maximize delivery of interventions. Involvement of academic institutions (e.g. Fiji School of Medicine) and professional associations as influential partners in child survival will be achieved through advocacy. Involvement of international and local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) will assist resource mobilization for child survival and forge community linkages particularly in the most marginalized areas of our priority countries in the Pacific.
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