The Australia-Indonesia Collaboration Storybook, Creative Strategies to Reduce Parasite Infections in School Children

The Storybook of the Australia-Indonesia Collaboration, Creative Strategies to Reduce Parasite Infections in School Children

Data shows that more than a third of Indonesian children aged 3-15 years can be categorized as stunting (36.8% in 2017). Parasitic infection is one of the main causes, where some areas in Bali are classified as having a moderate level of infection that affects about 24% of school children. The Australia-Indonesia collaboration, through the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, in collaboration with Udayana University, Griffiths University and the Australian National University (ANU), has funded an activity designed to reduce parasitic infections among students and to increase their growth, and ability to and their cognitive capacity to concentrate and get the most out of their studies.

Ni Made Utami Dwipayanti, Ph.D, a lecturer at the Undergraduate Public Health Study Program and also a researcher at the Center for Public Health Innovation (CPHI), Faculty of Medicine, Udayana University coordinated this activity and has produced an interesting health education storybook, designed for students, teachers, and families at home, to learn more about preventing parasitic infections and improving hygiene. The storybooks were handed over to representatives from the Bali Provincial Health Office, Education, Community Empowerment and Higher Education Offices in Bali at the Australian Consulate-General in Bali on Monday, 12 September 2022.

In his remarks, Australian Consul General in Bali, Ms Anthea Griffin said, "Bali is at the heart of the people-to-people relations of our two countries, and the cooperation between the University in Australia and Udayana University in Bali strengthens the main pillars of our bilateral relationship, including trade, investment, cooperation. development, education and training, and research and innovation."

Present at this activity Prof. Don Stewart, of Griffith University, and Prof. Darren Gray from ANU who has been working with Indonesia for almost 10 years to reduce 'open defecation' and improve sanitation and hygiene in rural communities. The handover of this book was also attended by the Deputy Dean for Academic Affairs and Planning, FK Unud, Dr. dr. I Gede Eka Wiratnaya, Sp.OT(K), Coordinator of the Undergraduate Public Health Study Program, dr. Putu Ayu Swandewi Astuti, MPH, Ph.D, Coordinator of the CPHI Unit, Prof. dr. Pande Putu Januraga, M.Kes, Dr.PH, and researchers from the CPHI Unit FK Unud