NACDDâs Pacific Chronic Disease Council (PCDC) serves as the NACDD Board of Directorsâ point of contact for each of the United States Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPI). The Council develops input, feedback, and perspective on the policy, leadership, and management of coordinated chronic disease prevention and health promotion to address chronic non-communicable diseases (NCD) and associated risk factors in the USAPI jurisdictions.
The PCDC has 10 Members representing the following USAPI jurisdictions:
Amber Lynn Mendiola-Romolor, Chair –Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
In the Pacific Care Model, patterned after the Health Resources and Services Administration Health Disparities Collaborative Model, the PCDC teams work to improve healthcare quality and outcomes by incorporating information technology, evidence-based disease management, organizational change best practices, and self-management supportâstrengthened by community resources.
Read the Pacific Chronic Disease Council’s Guidebook, Navigating the Course of Diabetes Self-Care (2021)
The Pacific Care Model uses the outrigger canoe and traditional navigation system as an organizing framework for healthcare teams to work collaboratively to improve outcomes.
Pacific canoe journeys were historically guided by expert knowledge of the stars and the oceanâs current and wave patterns. In the model, the six navigating stars characterize the basic elements for healthcare quality improvement.
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Each star navigates the changes needed in community and health systems to create effective communication (represented by the canoe mast) between informed, activated patients and families and a prepared, proactive healthcare team â which lead to patient- and family-centered services and improvements in health outcomes.
The Pacific NCD Collaborative is built on a participatory process that promotes co-learning and facilitates collaborative and equitable partnerships, building the skills and strengths of local leadership responsible for health.
Non-Communicable disease death rates continue to rise among the Pacific people along with increasing numbers of diabetes related complications such as amputations and kidney failure.
We must find ways to bend the curve and decrease the numbers. I commend the Non-Communicable Disease Collaborative, as it helps us share lessons learned and strengthen action with government ministries, healthcare systems, and community-based partners across the region.
Honorable Kalani Kaneko, Minister of Health, Republic of the Marshall Islands
For more information on the Pacific Chronic Disease Council, contact Patrick Luces, PCDC Chair.