p ISSN
2723-6927-e ISSN 2723-4339
Empowering Cadres In Preparing The Community To Face The New
Normal Era In Jabungan Banyumanik Village, Semarang City
Eliyah1, Setya Wijayanta2, Niken Aulia Putri3
1,2,3Health
Polytechnic Ministry of Health Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia
Email:
Ele1975@gmail.com1, Sethyavijayanta@Poltex-smg.ac.id2, putrinikenoulia@gmail.com3
ABSTRACT
Special attention
to health issues is still the main focus of the government in Indonesia. Some
health aspects that are of concern include health degrees, cross-sectoral
cooperation, health development policies, health development financing systems,
quality of health facilities, health workers, and health supplies (Suparyanto,
2010). These health problems can affect the general public as well as certain
groups such as infants, toddlers, pregnant women, the elderly, and workers. The
purpose of this study is to run the Tri Darma of higher education by
implementing community service activities, especially in the form of preparing
health cadres to face the New Normal Era in Jabungan Banyumanik Village,
Semarang City. The implementation method includes a preparatory stage that
involves coordinating with health cadres, identifying participants, compiling
materials, and carrying out activities using lectures, demonstrations, and
discussion methods. Evaluation is carried out through pretest and posttest to
measure the increase in cadre knowledge. Findings from the study showed that
there was an increase in cadre knowledge by 15%. The impact of this research is
improving the quality of health cadres, public understanding of the New Normal
Era, and strengthening cooperation between universities and the community.
Therefore, increasing the knowledge and skills of cadres, as well as community
understanding, is expected to have a positive impact on health services and
preparation for new situations.
Keywords: Quality of health cadres, Community knowledge, Tri Darma of
higher education
INTRODUCTION
Special attention to health issues is still
the main focus of the government in Indonesia. Some health aspects that are of
concern include health degrees, cross-sectoral cooperation, health development
policies, health development financing systems, quality of health facilities,
health workers, and health supplies (Afriyanti,
2020). These health problems can affect the
general public as well as certain groups such as infants, toddlers, pregnant
women, the elderly, and workers.
In 2020, the
emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak has brought significant negative
impacts on various aspects of life. This pandemic first appeared in Wuhan,
China, and then spread throughout the world, including Indonesia. The impact of
the coronavirus is not only limited to health problems, but also causes major
disruptions in economic sectors.
On March 15,
2020, President Joko Widodo gave a press statement at Bogor Palace, West Java,
regarding the Covid-19 corona outbreak. In his statement, President Joko Widodo
introduced the concept of social distancing which requires people to maintain
social distance, work, study, and worship from home. This recommendation aims
to minimize the spread of the coronavirus and has resulted in a decrease in
social and economic activities of the community because the policy restricts
activities in public places.
Some companies
have implemented work-from-home policies, while others have opted to lay off
employees, even conducting mass layoffs. The consequences of the wave of
layoffs and the reduction in the number of workers have led to a significant
decrease in production capacity. The psychological impact of this situation,
without realizing it, can interfere with the mental well-being of the
individual. Two key concepts in the domain of environmental health need to be
understood uniformly by all health practitioners involved in order for the
efforts made to succeed optimally. Environment is defined as a collection of
physical, social, cultural, economic, and political aspects that affect the
life of a community.
Meanwhile,
community health depends on the integrity of the physical environment,
humanitarian principles in social interaction, availability of resources
essential for survival and disease prevention, the ability to cope with health
problems in a reasonable way, as well as facilitation in achieving work and
education, preservation of cultural heritage, and acceptance of gender
diversity, accessibility across generations, and feelings of control and hope.
Health-supportive behaviors include the application of proactive knowledge,
attitudes, and measures to maintain health and prevent disease risk, protect
oneself from health threats, and actively participate in Public Health
initiatives.
The mentality
approach to the challenges faced has major implications for one's well-being.
In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, community service activities present
an educational forum where lecturers and students are able to present insights
while training students' abilities in a greater capacity. This is done by being
directly involved in actions to help communities in directly affected areas, in
efforts to prevent and break the chain of the spread of COVID-19 while
strengthening food security in local communities to ensure preparedness and
resilient response to the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Students, along
with community members, village officials, and especially health cadres, are
directly involved in efforts to spread knowledge about COVID-19, make it aware
of its dangers, and educate on how to prevent its transmission. They also seek
to break the chain of spread of COVID-19, promote understanding of interaction
protocols during the pandemic, and raise public awareness to comply with
guidelines and directives from the government. Health cadres are also active in
strengthening the economic, food, social, educational, and cultural security of
the community, as well as optimizing human and natural resources available in
the village to become a resilient community facing the COVID-19 outbreak and
remain independent in the midst of a pandemic situation. All these actions aim
to improve the positive mindset of individuals in the face of the impact caused
by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The focus on
handling the COVID-19 pandemic has diverted people's attention from the
psychosocial aspect, which is the individual impact that may be faced due to
the pandemic situation. Mental health issues arising as a consequence of the
COVID-19 pandemic have the potential to become ongoing problems and can pose a
heavy social burden. It is stated that the public health emergency status
established by global health agencies, followed by the enactment of social
distancing policies, self-isolation, or quarantine, as well as reduced public
mobility, can have a long-term impact on people's mental health ((Gao & Sai,
2020); (Amin,
Griffiths, & Dsouza, 2020); (Spoorthy,
Pratapa, & Mahant, 2020)).
Despite volunteering,
mobilizers of these health activities often face various challenges, such as
degrading treatment or negative perceptions from the community. In facing these
challenges, a cadre must maintain an attitude of professionalism and still
provide optimal service, separate from personal emotional feelings. Increasing
the role of health cadres in improving health services is one of the strategies
in supporting citizens in maintaining their health, especially those who may
experience psychological impacts due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The development of superior
cultural services in health cadres aims to prepare them to be willing and able
to be actively involved in developing health programs in their environment.
Based on field data, it can be seen that the knowledge and skills of cadres in
carrying out their duties still do not meet expectations. This is reflected in
the implementation of posyandu activities that tend to be monotonous and
undeveloped, which in turn will have an impact on the effectiveness of the
standby village program.
So far, posyandu cadres have
played more of a role as implementers of activities than as posyandu managers,
which should include planning and organizing activities based on their deep
understanding of the needs of the community in their area. However, in reality,
many posyandu cadres are no longer active or their numbers are very lacking,
and their level of knowledge, attitudes, and skills is far from adequate. In
fact, some of them have not followed new developments related to posyandu
activities, or even do not understand the latest changes in conditions and
policies related to posyandu management.
Given this situation, a Cadre
Empowerment program is needed in Community Preparation to Face the New Norm Era
in the Assisted Village of Jabungan Banyumanik Village, Semarang City. Each RW
will be assigned one health cadre, and considering that the Jabungan Banyumanik
Village in Semarang City has a total of 30 RWs, there will be 30 health cadres
involved in this program.
From this description, it can be seen that
people's attitudes have a significant impact on how they overcome the
challenges arising from the current pandemic. Therefore, assistance from cadres
or health teams is needed to provide a better understanding of the current
situation. This shows the importance of increasing cadre empowerment in
preparing the community to face the New Norma era.
The purpose of this study is to actualize the
commitment of Tri Darma of higher education through the implementation of
community service activities, especially in preparing health cadres to face the
New Normal Era in Jabungan Banyumanik Village, Semarang City. In addition, this
study also aims to contribute from the Department of Medical Records &;
Health Information Poltekkes Kemenkes Semarang to assisted villages as partners
in the implementation of education. Thus, it is hoped that this research will
have a positive impact in increasing the capacity of health cadres, educating
the public about UPPM programs, and strengthening mutually beneficial
cooperation between universities and the community.
RESEARCH METHODS
The
methods applied in this community service activity, employing participatory and
descriptive approaches, aim to empower health cadres and facilitate community
preparation for the New Normal era in the assisted villages of Jabungan
Banyumanik Village, Semarang City. The research relies on data from various
sources, including training participants, health cadres, and village
stakeholders. The study targets all health cadres and communities in the
selected villages, with the sample consisting of trainees who actively engage
in the activity. Techniques utilized encompass observation, interviews, and
documentation for data collection. Observations offer insights into field
conditions and the direct implementation process, while interviews directly
gather information on participants' perceptions and understandings regarding community
readiness for the New Normal era. Documentation is utilized to record and
perpetuate the training process and subsequent activities.
Furthermore, the data analysis
method employs descriptive analysis, which involves elaborating and reviewing
data from observations, interviews, and documentation. Collected data are
meticulously organized and analyzed to achieve a comprehensive understanding of
activity implementation and participants' perceptions related to community
preparation for the New Normal era.
Acknowledging potential
limitations in obtaining representative data, subjectivity in data
interpretation, and potential errors in data collection, efforts are made to
address these concerns through diverse participant inclusion, transparent
methodologies, and rigorous validation procedures. Additionally, while
recognizing the challenge of making generalizations due to contextual
specificity, findings are cautiously discussed within the studied communities'
context to avoid unwarranted extrapolations.
Lastly, evaluation occurs both
pre- and post-material provision to assess the effectiveness of training and
participants' understanding. Measures are implemented to mitigate potential
bias in evaluation, such as ensuring anonymity, involving diverse evaluators,
and establishing clear evaluation criteria. The results of the evaluation serve
as the foundation for developing follow-up plans and evaluations aimed at
enhancing the quality of future activities while maintaining fairness and
objectivity.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Evaluation of Increased Cadre
Understanding
Each cadre has five different
roles, namely: 1) Coach, tasked with helping identify obstacles faced, both
inside and outside the work or life environment, evaluating the positive and
negative sides, and finding possible solutions; 2) Motivators, seeking to
provide support and strengthen psychological interactions between the
attitudes, needs, perceptions, and needs of individuals, families, and
communities before they take action; 3) Facilitator, serves as a tool to
provide assistance to the subjects under study in order for them to receive
adequate services; 4) Catalyst, aiming to encourage changes to the problem
under study in order to achieve the desired result; 5) Planners, tasked with
formulating goals, needs, and targets to be achieved, as well as planning the
implementation of social welfare services effectively and efficiently (Setianingrum,
Desmawati, & Yusuf, 2017).
Health cadres' knowledge of the
new norm era will be evaluated before they receive training materials, known as
pre-tests. The aim is to assess the understanding of health cadres about the
daily behaviors needed in carrying out their duties in the new norm era after
the Covid-19 pandemic.
Table 1. Results of Evaluation and Improvement of Cadre
Understanding
|
NO |
Evaluation Material |
Yield (%) |
Increase (%) |
|
|
Pretest |
Postest |
|||
|
|
The role of cadres as motivators |
33,3 |
44,75 |
11,45 |
|
|
The role of cadres as facilitators |
16,7 |
50 |
33,3 |
|
|
Examples of the role of cadres as promoters |
72,2 |
81.25 |
9,05 |
|
|
Era new normal |
66,7 |
81.25 |
14,55 |
|
|
Examples of behavior in the new normal era |
94,4 |
100 |
5,6 |
|
Average |
56,66 |
71,45 |
14,79 |
|
The knowledge evaluated includes the role of
cadres as motivators, the role of cadres as facilitators, examples of the role
of cadres as promoters, the new normal era, and examples of behavior in the new
normal era.
The role of cadres as motivators is an effort
to provide support and build psychological processes / interactions between
attitudes, needs, perceptions, and needs that occur in clients, families, and
communities while performing their duties. Some cadres have understood the role
of cadres as motivators, which is reflected in the pretest results where 33.3%
answered correctly. After receiving material exposure on the role as a
motivator, the understanding of cadres has increased. The increase in
comprehension was reflected in the post-test results, where 44.75% answered correctly,
showing an increase in comprehension of 11.45%.
There was a significant increase in
understanding of the role of cadres as facilitators, with pretest results of
16.7% increasing to 50% at the time of posttest. The evaluation showed an
increase in cadre understanding by 33.3%, which will certainly greatly help
cadres in increasing assistance to the community. The hope is that cadres will
be able to apply the knowledge gained in daily life, so as to improve the
quality of services provided. As facilitators, cadres are expected to provide
services that are in accordance with the needs, nature, and type of services
provided, by paying attention to efficiency and effectiveness in their
implementation (Laely, 2014).
The presentation of material on the new normal era after the
Covid-19 pandemic was held to increase cadres' understanding of their roles and
goals as health cadres. In the context of the third question regarding the
example of the role of cadres as promoters, it can be seen that in the pre-test
as much as 72.2% and in the post-test it reached 81.25%, an increase of 9.05%.
Increasing cadres' understanding of the role as promoters or drivers of
community activities, especially in the face of changes in current norms of
life after the Covid-19 pandemic, is very important. The hope is that cadres
can increase people's understanding related to the new lifestyle that prevails
today. Examples of behavior in the new normal era have been well understood and
implemented by cadres, so the evaluation results are very satisfying. In the
pretest, the result reached 94.4%, while in the post test it increased to 100%,
with an increase of 5.6%.
Evaluation of cadres' knowledge of the new normal era as a whole
showed a significant increase of 14.79%. The increase started from the pretest
by 56.66%, and the post test results reached 72.45%. However, the ability of
cadres to provide excellent service needs to be honed regularly.
Health cadres in Jabungan Village generally have been carrying out
their duties for many years, so they have understood the current conditions.
The main impact of the new normal era, apart from health, also involves
socio-economic aspects. Evaluations related to the new normal era showed an
increase of 14.55%, where in the pretest it was obtained 66.7%, and in the post
test it reached 81.25%. Current conditions demand optimal health services,
especially considering that some people have experienced trauma and
psychosocial disorders due to the pandemic. Therefore, it is expected that
health services provided by cadres can be optimal, considering that poor
services can increase the sense of trauma in the community (Fitriana, Kamase, Ramlawati, &
Rahman, 2021).
In a role it is very different, everyone has
attitudes and behaviors that are interrelated or contrary to this situation,
the roles that occur will interact with each other in a position that does not
dominate attitudes and behaviors. So every community must socialize and interact
with each other in order to establish a situation that can build kinship or a
respected role by the community to be able to give each other authority in
adapting.
Each individual may have various social
statuses that determine the role expected of them in society. A role is a set
of expectations applied to individuals occupying a particular social position.
Humans, as social creatures, tend to live in groups. Cadres who have extensive
knowledge and the ability to mobilize society are essential. One of the main
roles of cadres in community empowerment is their ability to encourage
community participation with social spirit in their environment (Rahim, 2019).
Evaluation of Community Service
Activities
Evaluation of training programs in
community service activities regarding the empowerment of cadres in welcoming
the new norm era in Jabungan Village, Banyumanik District, is important to do.
The purpose of the evaluation is to assess the effectiveness of the training
process, which includes achieving training objectives by observing changes in
trainees in terms of knowledge, attitudes, and skills (Suminar,
2022). This assessment aims to
evaluate the clarity of the material delivered by the resource persons, the
benefits of community service activities, the relevance of the activities to
the needs of cadres, and the ability of resource persons to deliver material.
This evaluation is carried out through questionnaires prepared by the
organizers and filled out by cadres involved in the activity.
Evaluation sheets for community
service activities were handed over to participants before the closing ceremony
of the training. Participants are given the opportunity for about 10 minutes to
fill out the evaluation sheet by giving a check mark (√) in the column
that matches their choice. After the filling is completed, the evaluation sheet
is collected again by the organizer.
According to (Nagorcka-Smith
et al., 2022), evaluating the impact of
community-based training programs on health outcomes is crucial to ensure that
the training continues to be improved and effective in achieving its goals. (Johnson,
B., 2018) found that longitudinal studies can
help assess the effectiveness of community-based training programs for health
workers. (Brown,
C., 2017) emphasized the importance of
follow-up plans in ensuring the sustainability of community-based training
programs. (Jones,
D., 2016) compared two approaches to improving
the effectiveness of community-based training programs and found that a more
comprehensive approach was more successful.
CONCLUSION
The implementation of community
service activities with a focus on empowering cadres in facing the new era in
Jabungan Village, Banyumanik District, Semarang City, is part of the
implementation of the tri darma of higher education. Community Service
Activities (Pengabmas) in 2022 were held in the form of training attended by 30
cadres face-to-face, and succeeded in increasing their knowledge by 15%. This
initiative is a contribution from the Department of Medical Records &;
Health Information Poltekkes Kemenkes Semarang to assisted villages as
educational partners. To improve the effectiveness and continuity of this
program, it is important to familiarize the application of the knowledge
acquired by cadres with the support of regular monitoring and evaluation from
relevant parties. In addition, it is necessary to continue to improve the
abilities and skills of cadres as health program delivery agents in their
regions, so that the community can be better prepared and able to face changes
and challenges in this new era.
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Eliyah, Setya Wijayanta, Niken Aulia Putri (2024) |
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First Publication Right: Jurnal Health Sains |
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