NTU Public Health College wins U.S. award for community service

Taipei, April 9 (CNA) National Taiwan University (NTU) College of Public Health has been selected as recipient of the 2020 Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH) Harrison C. Spencer Award for Outstanding Community Service, making it the only recipient from outside the United States.

NTU College of Public Health and the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Public Health won the award jointly, College Dean Chan Chang-chuan (詹長權) said Wednesday on Facebook.

The award has been presented annually from 2018 and honors an ASPPH-member school or program with a long-standing, major institutional commitment to engage with communities to improve public health.

The award recipient receives US$5,000 that is intended to be distributed by the award recipient to one or more community partners for further cooperation.

Chan said that the NTU college has had longterm cooperative ties with the Lienchiang County and Changhua County governments in carrying out integrated community-based public health services, providing health screening for local residents, professional training for local public health workers and establishing a cooperation model between the academic and community sectors.

The incidence of gastric cancer among residents on Matsu Island is high and the NTU Public Health College has therefore been promoting early cancer screening, according to Chan.

Assisted by local public health authorities, teachers and students from the college frequently reach out to local communities on Matsu to conduct blood tests to detect several cancer types and chronic diseases, Chan told CNA.

Through early screening, patients can be detected and transferred to hospitals for treatment, Chan said, adding that thanks to the efforts of teachers and students over the past few years, the fatality rate from gastric cancer on Matsu has apparently declined.

The Changhua County government also joined the efforts later to promote health checks and cancer screening.

In addition, the public health college has also devoted itself to health promotion and education to help enhance public health awareness and train community volunteers, according to Chan.