Enhanced Collaboration at the Population Health Summit Bolsters Pacific Alliance
The inaugural Population Health Summit, themed 'Navigating Pathways Through the Pacific: Building Healthier and Stronger Island Communities', took place in June in Saipan, CNMI, with a high turnout of attendees. Organised by the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation, the event aimed to foster a population health mindset among public health programs across the Pacific.
Halina Palacios, Chief Operations Officer of Public Health for the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation, hoped to create a venue for public health workers from U.S. territories and freely associated states to share successes and learn from each other. The summit attracted over 50 people from off-island, and panelists expressed the need to set higher expectations for researchers who conduct studies using data from the Pacific Island jurisdictions.
The summit addressed not only individual medical concerns but also the social, economic, and environmental factors that influence community health outcomes. Popular topics included data capacity, expanding behavioral health approaches, technical assistance opportunities, and clinical resources. A panel discussion aimed to improve data collection and research across the region, while Oncologist Peter Brett and Dentist Angelina Sabino educated attendees on oral cancer in the Pacific, opening opportunities for collaboration on addressing the issue.
Island jurisdictions have high rates of oral cancer due to betel nut use with tobacco and high smoking rates. The need for a centralized Institutional Review Board in CNMI to review and monitor research on human subjects was emphasized. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S.-Affiliated Pacific Islands worked together to limit transmission.
The summit schedule included various plenaries, poster presentations, and panel discussions on behavioral health, public health, and clinical practice. The event also centred topics relevant to the region and invited faith group leaders and members of recovery communities to speak alongside specialists from throughout the Pacific. Halina Palacios felt a local summit would boost confidence in Pacific public health officials.
In a move to lower travel costs and boost attendance, the next Population Health Summit is being organised by the One Health Institute of the University of Zurich (UZH). Palacios predicts that the Population Health Summit will be well established over the next five years, and standards for the profession will have shifted. The summit prioritized Pacific Island culture, opening and ending each day with a prayer.
Through this summit, public health workers in the region have taken a significant step towards building healthier and stronger island communities, navigating the unique challenges they face and collaborating to create sustainable solutions.
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