OHD Announces New Community Partners to Address NHPI Birth Outcomes

OHD is pleased to announce our newly funded community partners for the Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (NHPI) Birth Outcomes Program: The Queen Center and the National Tongan American Society.

For over a decade, the Queen Center has been serving Utah’s Pacific Islander communities with the mission to “[empower these] communities to live healthier lifestyles through culturally meaningful health education and resources.” The Queen Center is uniquely positioned to serve a variety of Pacific Islander communities because of its diverse Steering Committee. Its involvement in a vast number of health-related initiatives provides the experience needed to contribute to OHDs NHPI Birth Outcomes Program.

Currently, the Queen Center is engaged in mobilizing community members to share meaningful and relatable experiences for a video production that will be shown during the program. The Queen Center will also be responsible for securing four program implementations sites, enlisting 8-12 community members to act as program facilitators, and recruiting 100 community members to participate in the program.

The National Tongan American Society, established in 1994, has a long history of working to “advocate for, and empower NHPI through programs and partnerships that promote NHPI health, youth development, model citizenship, education and cultural preservation.” The National Tongan American Society specializes in forming and maintaining meaningful community partnerships. Its experience in managing a variety of health programs makes it a seasoned partner for OHDs NHPI Birth Outcomes Program.

The National Tongan American Society will assist in securing one program implementation site, specifically selected to serve Tongan communities in Utah. It will also seek out two to three program facilitators who will be local community members. Finally, the National Tongan American Society will recruit at least 25 community members for program participation.

OHD is eager to collaborate with these community partners in this effort to improve birth outcomes and infant mortality disparities in Utah’s NHPI communities.