Wamena, Papua Pegunungan (ANTARA) - The Indonesian Red Cross Society (PMI) Office in Papua pushed for more volunteers to be deployed in all cities and districts in Papuan provinces to optimize medical services for residents.

Head of the PMI Office in Papua Zakeus Degei stated that his office was currently collecting the data of PMI volunteers in the region.

"We want to ensure that (Red Cross) volunteers will be available throughout the Papuan regions, while we still collect data for the Papua Pegunungan region, as new volunteers in the region have just been inaugurated," Degei stated here, Tuesday.

He remarked that the Papua PMI also organized training sessions for volunteers expected to provide basic medical assistance for residents in their localities.

He pointed out that while training sessions had been organized in Mimika District, Central Papua, and Jayawijaya District, Papua Pegunungan, volunteers in Jayawijaya have received training on first aid and handling of dead bodies.

"This is only the beginning, as we will organize and encourage more training, particularly for ambulance crews and on basic first aid, as they will be the backbone of Red Cross Society activities in districts," Degei noted.

The regional PMI head affirmed that with the support of the International Red Cross Society, his office is ready to register volunteers in the online database system.

Meanwhile, Assistant I of Jayawijaya Regional Secretary Tinggal Wusono lauded PMI's efforts to boost the capacity of residents, who volunteered in the Red Cross Society, to provide basic medical assistance for residents.

"We positively viewed this (development) as an effort to enhance our coordination to our collective duty to ensure that (PMI) activities can proceed effectively. We also support residents' enthusiasm to partake as volunteers for PMI," Wusono stated.

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Translator: Marius Frisson Y, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Sri Haryati
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