NCD Project

The Non Communicable Diseases (NCD) Research Project is a large team effort that VSHC initially undertook in 2012, to reduce NCD risk factors in the community. This was in collaboration with the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and the Ministry of Health. After the first year the funding ceased on 31/07/2013 and VSHC were very pleased to receive a grant from the Fiji Community Development Program (FCDP), an AusAid funded program, to continue this important community work. This funding ceased on November 31st, 2015 and a new round of FCDP funding commenced in February 2016 and will run until November 2016. The project now covers NCD, Reproductive Health and Composting.

                                      

The FCDP funding will allow us to do the following:-

1. Empower the Community through advocacy, education and health promotion activities to change their attitudes resulting in healthier life styles.   
2. Promote Wellness and reduce risk of NCDs by reducing or ceasing activities such as smoking, binge drinking, kava drinking, unhealthy eating habits and lack of physical exercise.  
3. Encourage members of the community who are already diabetic or have hypertension, obesity and other high risk health issues to comply with disease management in order to reduce complications and early death.
4. To train and deploy Community Health Workers to assist VSHC in its primary health care initiatives.
5. To create a model of effective community intervention in a primary health care setting so that this can be adopted by other civil society organisations to help reverse the NCD crisis.

Strategies are being developed to empower women to become more proactive in reducing dietary and other NCD risk factors for their families. This will include reducing excessive use of sugar and salt in the diet, using less saturated fats and encouraging more exercise in the family.

Dr Isimeli Tukana, the National Advisor NCD, Ministry of Health Fiji has said that VSHC is the “...first primary health centre setting to do a STEPs survey in Fiji. It's a Milestone breakthrough”