Jakarta. The past 10 years of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's administration have seen a greater focus on healthcare services and intensified efforts to revitalize thousands of community health centers (Puskesmas), the medical service unit closest to the people in both rural and urban areas.

During the last decade, 10,000 Puskesmas in districts across the nation have been revitalized with better equipment and additional health workers. The revitalization program also targets around 85,000 Puskesmas branches in villages and 300,000 integrated service posts (Posyandu) which focuses on a healthy lifestyle for mothers and toddlers.

Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said recently the revitalization was necessary to set a national benchmark for Puskesmas services because their level of service varied between districts.

"Healthcare services must not solely cover expectant mothers and toddlers but also encompass the elderly. Furthermore, we have introduced digitalization of Puskesmas data," Budi said.

According to him, in the 10 years of President Jokowi's leadership, healthcare services have prioritized promotional and preventive measures to maintain public health. One of the preventive measures taken by the government is immunization.

Currently, the government has launched three new antigens for immunization in Indonesia: the human papillomavirus vaccine (HPV) to prevent cervical cancer, the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) for pneumonia, and the rotavirus vaccine to prevent diarrhea.

"The campaign for HPV vaccine is motivated by the growing cases of cervical cancer cases in Indonesia. Cervical cancer is the second leading cause of death among women after breast cancer," Budi said

Additionally, the provision of the PCV and rotavirus vaccines is based on the high mortality rates among toddlers due to pneumonia and diarrhea.

"These three vaccines have garnered global attention, and Indonesia is immunizing with all three. This is a significant national program made possible by the successful leadership of President Jokowi," he said.

Among other functions, Posyandu helps parents accurately monitor the physical development of their toddlers. The Health Ministry has distributed over 300,000 anthropometric tools to Posyandu across Indonesia to standardize the weighing process.

Posyandu volunteers who conduct weighing receive training to meet the standards. 

'We have taught a total of 1.5 million Posyandu workers the correct way to weigh babies," Budi said.

The Ministry also sent ultrasound equipment to examine pregnant women to all Puskesmas across Indonesia.

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