The family assistance team movement is a form of preventive, promotional, and response movement.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The family assistance team exists as a preventive measure to help handle the problem of stunting in Indonesia, the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN) stated.

"The family assistance team movement is a form of preventive, promotional, and response movement," BKKBN's Advocacy, Movement, and Information DeputySukaryo Teguh Santoso said in a statement here on Friday.

The family assistance team will help facilitate communication with health workers and provide information and education to the public, he remarked.

A family assistance team comprises a midwife, who disseminates information on the family planning program, and the Family Welfare Empowerment (PKK) team, which could help by providing guidance and creating family resiliency.


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While providing guidance and education, the team will monitor the condition of the family through home visits and communicate with couples looking at a future together regarding the importance of having a birth certificate for children and matters related to unregistered marriage.

In terms of health, couples, keen on getting married in future, will be assisted to conduct a health examination, such as checking blood hemoglobin level as well as measuring body weight and height at least three months before marriage.


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Santoso considers such an examination as being important to ensure sound physical condition when women enter the pregnancy period.

This examination also serves to reduce the stunting rate that remains high to this day through data collection regarding the health of future fathers and mothers.

This assistance should be provided, as stunting not only has to do with the lack of nutrition for babies or introducing health aspects to mothers but also the parenting methodology applied by parents within a family, he asserted.

"Stunting is not just about nutrition but also about psychology, such as attachment parenting in couples that involves making children happy, so that the nutrition could be successfully consumed," he affirmed.


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Translator: Hreeloita S, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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