Litia Cava 
In a bid to address the alarming rates of violence against women and girls, the Ministry of Health and Medical Services has launched comprehensive health guidelines for the management of gender-based violence.
Health Ministry Head of Family Health Unit Doctor Rachel Devi highlighted reports that have shown Fiji and other Melanesian countries have some of the highest rates of violence compared to their Polynesian and Micronesian counterparts.
She says this guideline serves as a reference package for healthcare workers attending to gender-based violence cases, providing guidance on evidence collection and linking victims with social support services.
“The guideline for comprehensive case management is designed with an aim to train and guide healthcare workers uniformly throughout the Ministry of Health and Medical Services and all other private health sectors and it is a comprehensive and easy reference package that I must say a lot of you have contributed to and the role of health care workers are defined from the start of receiving a case to where it ends when they have sorted all medical issues and made appropriate referrals to the appropriate authorities of this country.”
The Health Ministry has also made a commitment to prioritize survivor-centered care for victims of gender-based violence and integrate it as part of primary healthcare.
With a focus on preventing negative sexual and reproductive health outcomes such as pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections, Fiji is taking a significant step towards ending gender-based violence.
This has been made possible through the assistance rendered to the ministry by the United Nations Population Fund, government, and Non-Government Organizations.
