Pacific Island Health Officers Association

10/08/2026

Another Important Milestone for Maternal Health in the U.S.-Affiliated Pacific Islands

On September 30, 2026, American Samoa conducted its first Maternal Mortality Review Committee (MMRC) case review as part of its participation in the CDC Division of Reproductive Health’s Enhancing Reviews and Surveillance to Eliminate Maternal Mortality (ERASE MM) program.

This milestone reflects the dedication of the American Samoa Department of Health (AS DOH), ERASE MM program staff, and newly established MMRC members who came together to carefully review a pregnancy-associated death and identify opportunities to strengthen maternal health systems and prevent future deaths.

The multidisciplinary review process brings together clinical and community perspectives to better understand the circumstances surrounding each death, identify contributing factors, and develop recommendations that are meaningful and actionable within the American Samoa context.

American Samoa’s first case review represents a critically important step toward building a sustainable maternal mortality review process and using local data and experiences to improve the health and safety of mothers and families.

Congratulations to the American Samoa ERASE MM team, MMRC members, and AS DOH leadership for reaching this significant milestone and advancing maternal mortality prevention across the USAPIs!

10/06/2026

The Hawaiʻi Journal of Health & Social Welfare has published a special issue highlighting the impact of regional workforce development across the U.S.-Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPIs)!

This issue features research from graduates of PIHOA's Strengthening Health Interventions in the Pacific (SHIP) Field Epidemiology Training Program and the Pacific Public Health Fellowship Program (PPHFP).

Key Highlights: An 81% retention rate among PPHFP fellows transitioning into local health department roles Applied "from work, at work, for work" field epidemiology models to improve surveillance and data analytics Evidence-based policy tools, including interactive data dashboards, driving real health system improvements

Congratulations to all the USAPI authors, leaders, and teams who contributed to this milestone!

Read the full special issue: [https://conta.cc/4ekyTeX]

Email from Pacific Island Health Officers Association (PIHOA) Read the Sept 2026 HJHSW issue featuring research from PIHOA's SHIP and Fellowship graduates. For Immediate Release October 6, 2026 PIHOA

10/05/2026

Strengthening local health capacity in American Samoa!

Six local team members from the Department of Health (ASDOH) and ASCC recently earned their certification as Public Health Pest Control applicators following an intensive 4-day training. Supported by PIHOA, AS-EPA, and the U.S. Army, this milestone builds critical local capacity to respond safely and effectively to dengue outbreaks.

Congratulations to the new certified applicators!

Read the full announcement: [https://conta.cc/47lvg4R]

Email from Pacific Island Health Officers Association (PIHOA) ASDOH, PIHOA, and partners complete critical pest control certification to support outbreak response. For Immediate Release October 5, 202

10/03/2026

When dengue fever cases persisted in Samoa, a Public Health Vector Management Training in Apia provided a key opportunity to strengthen real-time public health response. 🇼🇸🦟

Delivered by U.S. Army PHC-P Entomologists in collaboration with the Samoa Ministry of Health, the U.S. Embassy, and the Pacific Vector Network (PVN), the training equipped 29 local leaders across public health, agriculture, customs, port, and tourism sectors with novel insecticide technologies and hands-on mosquito surveillance tools.

Read more about how multi-agency collaboration and certified field training are supporting dengue response and vector control in Samoa.

🔗 Read the full e-blast: [https://conta.cc/4j2RqzQ]

Email from Pacific Island Health Officers Association (PIHOA) Building outbreak readiness: Highlights from the July Public Health Vector Management Training. For Immediate Release October 2, 2026 Figh

10/02/2026

🌺 Strengthening Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Across the Pacific

The PIHOA Secretariat was proud to support and join representatives from the U.S.-Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPIs) and hundreds of childhood lead poisoning prevention professionals from across the U.S. at the CDC National Center for Environmental Health’s (NCEH) Annual Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program Recipients Meeting, held September 21–23, 2026, in Atlanta, Georgia.
The meeting provided a valuable opportunity for USAPI health agency representatives from American Samoa, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), Palau, and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) States of Chuuk, Kosrae, and Yap, to share their experiences, learn from colleagues across the country, and strengthen partnerships to advance childhood lead poisoning prevention (CLPP) in our island communities.

🌟 Featured USAPI Voices

Aileen Solaita and Tui Sualevai Taufaasau of the American Samoa Department of Health's Division of Environmental Health (ASDOH DEH) delivered a passionate keynote presentation highlighting American Samoa's journey in establishing its CLPP program and the importance of community collaboration and cultural relevance in protecting children from lead.

John Tagabuel of the CNMI Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation (CHCC) and Maxshelton Talimelipiy of Yap Department of Health Services (DHS), FSM, participated in a panel discussion on partnerships and coordination, sharing their experiences and perspectives on strengthening CLPP programs in island community settings.

🤝 Strengthening CDC – USAPI Collaboration

On Wednesday afternoon, CDC NCEH hosted a dedicated meeting with USAPI health agency and PIHOA Secretariat representatives. The session provided an important opportunity for CDC colleagues to hear directly from USAPI representatives about their experiences, priorities, and the unique challenges facing island health systems. Participants also learned more about the expertise and resources available across NCEH's branches to support USAPI health agencies.

The PIHOA Secretariat extends its sincere appreciation to CDC NCEH’s Dr. Erik Svendsen, Dr. Paul Allwood, CAPT Anna Khan, CAPT Monica Leonard, and Ms. Quanza Wilson, along with the entire CDC/NCEH team, and Ms. Tamika Hoyte and her team at the CDC Public Health Infrastructure Center Office for Island Affairs, for their continued support, partnership, and commitment to working alongside USAPI health agencies and PIHOA.

We are especially grateful to all our USAPI colleagues for their leadership, dedication, and commitment to protecting children from lead and other environmental health exposures, and to our partners for their ongoing collaboration and support.

Together, we continue to strive to strengthening regional collaboration and building sustainable and impactful CLPP programs across the Pacific. 🌏💙

for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Center for Environmental Health of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) Samoa Department of Health

09/03/2026

A historic milestone for maternal health in the U.S.-Affiliated Pacific Islands

On August 13, 2026, Palau conducted its first maternal mortality case review through the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Enhancing Reviews and Surveillance to Eliminate Maternal Mortality (ERASE MM) program, the first ERASE MM case review conducted in the U.S.-Affiliated Pacific Islands.

This important milestone reflects the dedication of Palau’s ERASE MM team and their commitment to strengthening systems for identifying, reviewing, and preventing pregnancy-associated deaths.

Special recognition goes to the Palau team, who made this first review possible:
🌺 Irish Tutii, Program Manager
🌺 Anthea Ngirchokebai, ERASE MM Coordinator
🌺 Mindy Sugiyama, Project Epidemiologist
🌺 Biudole Ulutoga, Nurse Abstractor

Technical assistance was provided on-site by Tegan Callahan, Division of Reproductive Health (CDC), and PIHOA's Maternal Mortality Review Technical Consultant, Dr. Haley McGinley.

Conducting a case review is an important step toward turning individual experiences into opportunities for systems improvement. Through careful, multidisciplinary review, Palau can identify contributing factors, develop locally relevant recommendations, and strengthen efforts to prevent future pregnancy-associated deaths.

Congratulations to the Palau ERASE MM team on this groundbreaking achievement and for helping lead the way for maternal mortality review across the Pacific! We are especially proud of Ms. Ngirchokebai's engagement in this work as a recent graduate of PIHOA's Pacific Public Health Fellowship Program (PPHFP) as an Amy St. Pierre Maternal Child Health Fellow. 🌊💙

07/31/2026

🎉 Celebrating the Graduation of the Pacific Public Health Fellowship Program - Cohort 5! 🎓

PIHOA's Pacific Public Health Fellowship Program (PPHFP) proudly recognizes 16 exceptional Fellows as they complete their two-year Fellowship training, marking another milestone in strengthening the local Pacific public health workforce.

Hosted by Ministries and Departments of Health in American Samoa, Pohnpei, Chuuk, Kosrae, Yap, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau, these local Fellows have gained valuable hands-on training while improving health outcomes for their communities. Throughout their PPHFP Fellowship, they have led initiatives that strengthen health systems, improve public health services, and address priority health needs and gaps to strengthen USAPI laboratory services, pharmacy, maternal and child health, communicable and non-communicable diseases, behavioral health, and disease surveillance and epidemiology.

This training would not be possible without the dedication of their host site supervisors, mentors, and host site programs who invested their time, knowledge, and leadership to guide each Fellow.

Congratulations to PPHFP Cohort 5! We celebrate building the next generation of USAPI public health leaders and champions that continue to make a lasting impact throughout island communities. 🌊💙

07/22/2026

The Pacific Vector Network Convenes Fourth Annual Meeting to Strengthen Regional Preparedness Against Vector-Borne Diseases

Nadi, Fiji - Thirty-five (35) vector control professionals from 18 Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs), 12 allied and regional partners, and 5 Pacific Vector Network (PVN) Secretariat representatives gathered for a joint convening of the 4th Annual PVN Meeting 2026 in Nadi, Fiji, on June 11, 2026. The purpose of the meeting was to review progress, strengthen collaboration, and identify priority actions to enhance vector surveillance, outbreak preparedness, and response across the Pacific Island region.

Email from Pacific Island Health Officers Association (PIHOA) For Immediate Release May 29, 2026 Strengthening Public Health Resilience: Integrating Dengue Response and Vector Control in Chuuk State T

06/18/2026

On May 4 - 7, 2026, USAPI laboratory representatives participated in the 2026 Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) Conference, held in Baltimore.

USAPI laboratory professionals from Guam Department of Public Health and Social Services, American Samoa Department of Health, RMI Ministry of Health and Human services, Ministry of Health & Human Services - Republic of Palau, Pohnpei State Department of Health and Social Services, Yap State Department of Health Services and Department of Health Services, State of Chuuk, connected with global and national laboratory leaders, scientists, and partners. They explored emerging trends, innovative public health data solutions, latest laboratory technologies, and best practices to strengthen our USAPI laboratory and public health systems.

Fellows from PIHOA’s Pacific Public Health Fellowship Program (PPHFP) also presented a poster on USAPI laboratory workforce development, showcasing the impact of building a pipeline of emerging public health laboratory professionals dedicated to serving their island communities throughout the region. 🌺🌏

05/30/2026

When dengue fever cases were confirmed in Chuuk State in December 2025, a scheduled Category 8 Public Health Pest Control training quickly became an opportunity to support real-time public health response. 🚨

Delivered by the PIHOA Secretariat in collaboration with the Department of Health Services, State of Chuuk and Chuuk -Environmental Protection Agency, the training strengthened local capacity in mosquito surveillance, vector control, and rapid response to mosquito-borne disease threats. 🤝🏽

Read more about how Early Warning Systems, field training, and coordinated response efforts supported dengue response and vector control in Chuuk. 🦟

🔗 Read the full e-blast: https://conta.cc/43AREFd

Email from Pacific Island Health Officers Association (PIHOA) For Immediate Release May 29, 2026 Strengthening Public Health Resilience: Integrating Dengue Response and Vector Control in Chuuk State T