Depok-In Indonesia, 1 in 3 children will experience stunting in 2021, and specifically in the Thousand Islands as many as 27.1% of children are detected as stunted. Based on inspection z score conducted by the community service team from the Vocational Education Program at the Universitas Indonesia (UI) there were 3 out of 13 children in Tanjong Timur, Panggang Island, Thousand Islands, suffering from stunting, and generally found in children who have not done the habit of washing their hands with soap regularly and have had diarrhea.
This community service provides counseling and training for health workers and local residents on basic knowledge of early detection of stunting in children under five on Panggang Island. If a child is stunted, then this will also affect their academic achievement because there are disturbances in the development of the brain, motor, and other vital organs. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), stunting can be characterized by physical characteristics, such as a child’s height below normal child growth standards accompanied by disturbances and developmental delays in other organs.
(Photo: Triana educates Panggang Island residents about stunting)
“Stunting is a chronic malnutrition problem caused by poor eating habits and sanitation. One of the ways to prevent and overcome it is early detection in the first 1,000 days of life, improving children’s nutritional intake, and teaching children clean and healthy living habits, especially washing hands with soap,” said Triana Karnadipa, S.Ft., Physio., M.Sc., head of the community service team of the Physiotherapy study program, Vocational Education Program, Universitas Indonesia (UI) who conducted counseling in the Child Friendly Integrated Public Space (RPTRA) of Tanjung Timur, Panggang Island, Thousand Islands, on August 19, 2022.
This community service team provides free nutritional status checks for children under five years of age, as well as education to parents regarding stunting prevention measures. The examination consisted of measuring weight, height, BMI, and calculating the z score. The follow-up provided was in the form of education in 6 steps of washing hands with soap for 60 seconds and the right time to wash hands for parents and children.
She further explained that health workers and parents were also trained to calculate the z score to determine the nutritional status of children and the growth trend of their children. So, they can detect stunting in children independently and can take action to improve nutrition and child health as early as possible.
(Photo: Hand washing practice by Panggang Island children to prevent stunting)
Another activity in this community service is the movement of washing hands using soap effectively which is one of the behaviors of clean and healthy living. The service team also provided the training to health workers and mothers on Panggang Island in order to teach their children to always have a clean and healthy lifestyle, so that stunting can be prevented and child development is optimal.
“Activities like this really help housewives who lack knowledge about health and sanitation. The information provided can guide the public to be more aware and understand how to prevent stunting in children,” said Sakinah, one of the counseling participants and health workers on Panggang Island.
