The Stunting Rate in East Java is Still High, UM Surabaya Lecturer Initiates the Smart Cadre Program

• 07 Mar
• 2022

Foto ilustrasi stunting (dok:istimewa)

The Stunting Rate in East Java is Still High, UM Surabaya Lecturer Initiates the Smart Cadre Program

• Article
• By Uswah Sahal
• Health
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Stunting is a condition of malnutrition in infants in the first 1000 days of life that lasts a long time and causes delays in brain development and child development. Due to chronic malnutrition, stunted babies grow shorter than the standard height for toddlers of their age.

Growth and development failure in stunting poses a risk to the next toddler's life, increases morbidity and mortality, decreases learning capacity, increases the risk of infection, decreases productivity and economic capacity.

Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa at the Socialization of the National Action Plan to Accelerate the Reduction of Stunting in Indonesia (RAN PASTI) by the BKKBN in Surabaya said that efforts to investigate and suppress stunting cases in East Java must start from the lowest level, starting from the relevant village officials, village midwives, and sub-district heads. .

Responding to this, UM Surabaya lecturer Ira Purnamasari, the initiator of smart cadres to prevent stunting, appreciated the Governor for reducing the stunting rate in East Java which was proven to be 25.64 percent in 2020 and 23.5 percent in 2021.

"In addition to the village midwife, for handling stunting, the role of posyandu cadres is also very important," said Ira Monday (7/3/22)

Posyandu cadres are community members selected from and by the community, willing and able to work together in various posyandu activities on a voluntary basis who are trained to deal with individual health problems as well as routine posyandu services.

Ira also explained that the role of cadres in organizing the posyandu is very large because apart from being a motivator for the community to come to the posyandu, they are also a provider of health information to the community, as well as a facilitator in giving directions to pregnant women and mothers with toddlers.

"The UM Surabaya Smart Cadre Program is an activity to increase the capacity of posyandu cadres in preventing stunting in pregnant women in their area. Through several knowledge transfer programs through mentoring cadres in an interactive and applicable way," he said again.

He hopes that with this program, cadres will have the ability to carry out preventive and promotive efforts related to stunting while at the same time being able to provide interventions for pregnant women and mothers with toddlers in their respective areas.

"Posyandu cadres as an extension of the Puskesmas in monitoring the growth and development of children must play an active role in creating a more productive young generation," he concluded.