Indonesia is still faced with the burden of nutritional problems, namely the high prevalence of stunting, wasting (malnutrition), obesity, and micronutrient deficiencies. Based on the Indonesian Nutrition Status Survey (SSGI) of the Ministry of Health in 2022, the prevalence of wasting toddlers was 7.7 percent and stunting toddlers was 21.6 percent. Nutritional problems are caused by various factors, including eating patterns with unbalanced nutrition, difficulty in accessing health services, and low educational and economic levels.
Departing from this concern, students from the Faculty of Medicine (FK) at Universitas Indonesia (UI) who are members of the student organization Center for Indonesian Medical Students’ Activities Universitas Indonesia (CIMSA UI) provided education and distributed food packages to the residents of Kampung Pemulung, Lebak Bulus, South Jakarta. The activity, which took place on Sunday, October 15th 2023, was in collaboration with the Gembira Seharian Community, a community that focuses on community empowerment.
CIMSA UI is an activity-based medical student organization that works on various health issues. Founded in 2001, CIMSA’s activities are based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agenda set by the United Nations (UN), especially numbers 3, 4, 5, and 13 which focus on the topic of good health and well-being, quality education, gender equality, and climate action.
A total of 350 “Healthy Plate” food packages were distributed to residents during this community service (pengmas) activity. Healthy Plate is a term used by the service students in this activity, referring to portions of balanced nutritional food in accordance with the “Fill My Plate” guidelines regulated by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia.
“This time, CIMSA UI collaborated with the Gembira Seharian Community to provide education to residents in Kampung Pemulung and distribute food packages. “The hope is that we can share long-term joy with each other through developing healthy lifestyles, one of which is through nutrition and balanced nutrition,” said Nabilah Putri Damayanti, Chair of CIMSA UI 2023-2024.
Procurement of healthy food packages for this activity was obtained from collecting donations made before the activity via the CIMSA UI Instagram social media channels (@cimsaui) and Gembira Seharian (@gembira.seharian). Donations collected from 1st–10th of October 2023 were used to make and distribute 350 portions of healthy plates to the residents.
Preparations of the food packages were carried out directly in one of the residents’ homes by the students along with the women of Kampung Pemulung. Apart from distributing food packages, the CIMSA UI team also provided education to the mothers of Kampung Pemulung about healthy and nutritious food according to the “Fill My Plate” guidelines.
“Fill My Plate” aims to help residents understand how to arrange food portions according to nutritional needs and as a complement to the 4 Healthy 5 Complete concept. To the residents, the FKUI students provided recommendations for alternative food ingredients that were affordable, but could still fulfill the residents’ nutritional needs, such as tubers, tofu, tempeh, eggs, water spinach, and cassava leaves.
Nabilah said that the knowledge that had been shared was able to encourage residents to live healthier lives. “We also hope that in the future, the residents of Kampung Pemulung can apply the principles of healthy plates while still using ingredients that are affordable and easily available in the surrounding environment,” said Nabilah.
The community service activity was closed with various games with the mothers and children of Kampung Pemulung. The joy and thanks expressed by the residents inspired UI students to continue holding activities that are useful and able to improve the health and happiness of the community.