The Health, Population Control, and Family Planning Office (Dinkes P2KB) of Gorontalo Province has taken concrete steps to improve the quality of public services for persons with disabilities. All healthcare workers under the office are now encouraged to master basic sign language skills as part of efforts to create an inclusive healthcare ecosystem.
This capacity-building effort is realized through intensive training involving experts from the Movement for the Welfare of the Deaf in Indonesia (GERKATIN) and the inclusion activist community, Rangkul Asa. The program is designed so that medical personnel can communicate effectively with deaf patients without significant barriers.
This initiative is part of the local government's commitment to ensuring equal rights to health for all segments of society, including disability groups. By mastering sign language, it is hoped that medical misinterpretation will not occur and public trust in government health facilities will continue to increase.
The organizers emphasized that communication skills in sign language are a crucial competency for the frontlines of health services. This step is expected to become a new standard of service in every community health center (puskesmas) and hospital in the Gorontalo region to support the realization of disability-friendly health services.
