Here is a copied post from our last Community Health Worker Academy Conference that happened on July 26-28 on our Facebook page,
“Malo ‘aupito/Fa’afetai lava/Koṃṃool/Kalahngan/Mahalo nui loa (thank you) to our amazing Pasifika Community Health Workers (CHWs), CHW leads, CHW mentors, and CHW trainers who’ve traveled from all over including the USAPI, the continental U.S., and Hawaii for the NAOPO Pasifika CHW Training in Arkansas! We also want to give a big thank you to the Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese for their hospitality and generosity. Thank you to Dr. Nia for bringing us all into the community with each! Thank you to all who traveled CHWs and CHW mentors from Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Hawaii, Iowa, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, South Dakota, Utah, Texas,
During our time in Arkansas, our keynote speaker Mr. Nena Toleanoa, the Kosrae Community Health Center Chief Executive Officer taught us the importance of bridging the health equity gap with Federally Qualified Community Health Centers (FQHCs). We learned the importance of the work that Community Health Workers do to promote the health of our communities!
Dr. Megan Inada, Lalo Ishiki-Kalahele, and Bernice Musrasrik from Kokua Kahli Valley reminded us the importance of our Pasifika indigenous practices, and becoming trauma informed to allow us to use story telling as a way of providing community care and self-care as CHWs.
Our Pan-Pacific Island identity panel discussed how we can connect and build culturally grounded practices by learning about our own identities and learn about cultural values and practices from our Pasifika relatives across Chuuk, Hawaii, Marshall Islands, Melanesia, Kosrae, Pohnpei, Samoa, and Tonga. We’d like to thank our panelists Tafilisaunoa Toleafoa, Merius Wenda, Melisa Laelan, Fahina Pasi, Lalo Ishiki-Kalahele, Bernice Musrasrik, and Cecilia Sigrah for sharing their experiences and cultural values with our CHWs.
Registered Dietician Cecilia Sigrah from the Kosrae Community Health Center shared with us information about Pasifika Nutrition and how consuming foods indigenous foods can help with reducing rates of chronic disease such as type 2 diabetes.
Anlur Pedro and Junior Korok from Aenamaan, a Marshallese men’s group shared about their group and how Marshallese cultural values are used to promote positive action and build community in a healthy and culturally grounded way.
Dr. Nia Aitaoto discussed health equity and how addressing social determinants of health (SDOHs) improving health outcomes among our Pasifika community. CHWs are the answer for providing a health equity framework as trusted members of their community as advocates, health educators, and resource navigators.
Tafilisaunoa Toleafoa, the Pacific Community of Alaska Executive Director provided our CHWs with a reminder of how radical self-care practices should be put into our everyday lives. This can look like setting healthy boundaries and saying “no” when we are at capacity. As CHWs and helpers, self-care is a priority in sustaining the work that we do alongside our community members.
Merius Wenda shared with CHWs important advocacy work for our West Papuan relatives and the fight they are facing for their independence. Merius Wenda provided us with the reality of what is happening in our neighboring island of West Papua and called us to action to being awareness to the genocide that is happening in his home country.
We ended off our training with a beautiful Saturday at the Stroll the Atolls hosted by the Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese (ACOM) and traveling home with a cooler full of Tyson chicken courtesy of ACOM!”
For more information of our next CHW3 Academy Training, go to our Events page to learn more. Follow us and like our page on Facebook.