Pacific language videos: Samoa
The second episode in the AUT Pacific language video series – ‘Adapting to a changing world, shaping resilient futures’ – has been released.
Narrated in Samoan (with English subtitles) to acknowledge Samoa Language Week being celebrated in Aotearoa, the video highlights the importance of immunisation for Pacific communities.
The video is based on a finding from the Pacific Islands Families Study, that 89 per cent of Pacific infants, aged two and living in South Auckland, were fully immunised in 2002.
The Study showed a substantial increase from national survey data of 53 per cent in 1992, and prior to the establishment of the National Immunisation Register.
Director of the PIF Study, Associate Professor El-Shadan Tautolo, says the data was important at the time as it showed that initiatives in Aotearoa to increase immunisation rates amongst our Pacific children seemed to be succeeding.
“These were some really positive findings, which gave strong indication that our Pacific communities were responding well to national initiatives around immunisation, and that these initiatives warranted continuation.”
“Immunisation remains one of the best ways to protect ourselves, and particularly our infants, from infectious diseases,” says Associate Professor Tautolo.
“As a father myself, I am certain that immunisation is a major protective mechanism to ensure our children are resilient in the face of major threats to our health.”
“Collectively we must do all we can, as individuals, as parents, and as a community, and as health professionals, to support efforts to encourage our families and children to be immunised.”
Read more about findings of the research here. This research was supported by grants awarded from the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology, the Health Research Council of New Zealand and the Maurice & Phyllis Paykel Trust.
Release dates for the upcoming videos
To watch each video as it is launched, follow the Pacific at AUT Facebook page or follow on YouTube.
- Kiribati – Sunday 12 July
- Cook Islands – Sunday 2 August
- Tonga – Sunday 6 September
- Tuvalu – Sunday 27 September
- Fiji – Sunday 4 October
- Niue – Sunday 18 October
- Tokelau – Sunday 25 October