The Institute for Research and Community Service at the Bandung Institute of Technology (LPPM ITB) organized a community service event aimed at enhancing the skills of Village Health Workers and Laboratory Technologists in Sabang City in managing zoonotic diseases.
This event took place at the Bappeda Office Hall in Sabang City with the theme "Strengthening the Capabilities of Health Workers and Medical Laboratory Technologists (ATLM) in Handling Zoonotic Diseases in Sabang City, Aceh Province," on Tuesday (12/06/2024).
Dr. rer. nat Fifi Fitriyah Masduki, the head of the LPPM ITB team, stated that this initiative is part of ITB's community service activities, aiming to improve the capabilities of health workers and medical laboratory technologists (ATLM) in Sabang City in dealing with zoonotic diseases. "The presence of the LPPM ITB team in the border area of Indonesia, Srinanti Village, is part of the lecturers' service to the community to develop the region," she told Niaga.Asia on Thursday (13/06/2024).
She emphasized that an effective and globally integrated zoonotic disease surveillance system is essential for the prevention and control of zoonotic and emerging infectious diseases. Such a system needs to detect the emergence of diseases in human or animal populations as early as possible to trigger timely outbreak investigations. "This process includes specimen collection, analysis, and laboratory confirmation of the outbreak causes, as well as clinical diagnostic capabilities that enable timely 'field' diagnoses of emerging zoonotic diseases," Dr. Fifi Fitriyah Masduki explained.
Additionally, Dr. Fifi mentioned that knowledgeable and skilled individuals are crucial for supporting the surveillance system in Sabang City. They are needed to investigate outbreaks in the field, identify the causes, sources of infection, and actionable risk factors.
The initiative has two main objectives:
Dr. Fifi Fitriyah Masduki further explained that to achieve these goals, scientific education on zoonotic diseases was provided through offline training sessions with speakers from ITB's Biochemistry Department, SITH ITB, and experienced researchers from BRIN in zoonotic disease surveillance systems. The activities were also combined with workshops involving practical specimen collection, analysis, and laboratory confirmation.
She hopes that this initiative will make the zoonotic disease surveillance system in Sabang City more effective in detecting and controlling diseases, thus improving public health. Additionally, it is hoped that the independence of the UPTD Labkesda Health Office in Sabang City will be enhanced in addressing zoonotic disease issues in the region.
The importance of controlling zoonotic and emerging infectious diseases was also highlighted by Acting Mayor of Sabang, through Assistant II Rinaldi Syahputra, who stated that an effective and globally covered surveillance system is essential to detect zoonosis. "Zoonosis is a disease transmitted from animals to humans, which has become a global health threat," he said on Tuesday (12/06/2024).
"Early detection allows us to promptly investigate disease outbreaks, minimizing their impact," said Rinaldi Syahputra. He also appreciated the training conducted by LPPM ITB in collaboration with the Sabang City Health and Family Planning Agency, UPTD Labkesda, Exeins Health Initiative (EHI), and the Eijkman Molecular Biology Research Center BRIN.
"This activity aims to educate about zoonotic diseases and enhance the capabilities of ATLM in specimen collection, analysis, and laboratory confirmation. This allows us to detect and control diseases early. We greatly appreciate the speakers who shared their knowledge and experience with us in Sabang," he concluded.
Similarly, the Head of the Sabang City Health and Family Planning Agency, Dr. Edi Suharto, stated that the theme of the event is "Strengthening the Capabilities of Health Workers and Medical Laboratory Technologists (ATLM) in Handling Zoonotic Diseases in Sabang City, Aceh Province." This support is highly needed and anticipated by the health laboratory staff in Sabang City. Although the laboratory facilities and equipment are complete, legal authorization is still pending.
"This is invaluable knowledge we received today. We hope our staff can follow and learn it well, and we will strive to obtain legal authorization from the Indonesian Ministry of Health for the Sabang City Labkesda this year," explained Dr. Edi Suharto.
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acehglobalnews.id: Kader dan Ahli Teknologi Laboratorium Medik Kota Sabang harus peka terhadap penyakit Zoonosis
acehglobalnews.id: Pentingnya Pengendalian Zoonosis serta penyakit infeksius baru
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