Public health focuses on promoting and protecting the well-being of individuals and communities. Public health research identifies health hazards, investigates root causes, monitors population health, and provides guidance on effective Behavior Change Communication to inform and educate at-risk populations.
Social Solutions has been involved in various public health research projects, primarily in collaboration with the Suriname Ministry of Health. Since 2010, our team has conducted multiple Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) surveys on malaria to support Suriname’s efforts toward malaria elimination. Additionally, we have carried out Integrated Biological and Behavioral Surveillance (IBBS) assessments on HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections among hard-to-reach populations, including sex workers and men who have sex with men in urban areas and gold mining regions. We also conducted an IBBS assessment among Surinamese youth and young adults.
Social Solutions research team in Alimoni, Suriname
Other health-related studies we have undertaken include research on knowledge and risk behaviors related to hepatitis in Suriname-French Guiana border communities, a study of perceptions and knowledge of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Guyana, the establishment of nutritional guidelines for Surinamese society, and an assessment of domestic violence among Indigenous Peoples in Suriname.
OLD TEXT
Public Health interventions aim to improve health and quality of life through prevention and treatment of disease and other physical and mental health conditions. Governments and national and international organizations work towards these objectives through surveillance of cases and health indicators, and through promotion of healthy behaviors. Social Solutions supports these efforts by collecting scientifically robust data on health indicators of primarily vulnerable and difficult to reach populations. In past public health projects we worked with sex workers, Men-who-have-Sex-with Men, irregular migrants, gold miners, and interior populations, among other groups.
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Our pubic health studies have focused, among others, on malaria, HIV/ AIDS, use of male and female condoms, Non-Communicable Diseases, and mercury contamination, both in Suriname and in other Caribbean countries. Collected data and related recommendations have been used by government departments such as the National AIDS Program and the Malaria Program, and by international development agencies such as the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), to monitor and improve their health services and outreach programs.​
Public Health