Family Support Centre

Helping to alleviate pain

Jean has trained more than 30 staff and students on counselling in preparation to establish Family Support Centres in all six districts of Simbu Province in 2023.

She was one of 24 Papua New Guineans who studied a Graduate Certificate in Counselling in 2020 through the Australia Awards PNG Short Course Awards.

Like other social workers and counsellors in PNG, Jean’s daily experience of gender-based violence cases is overwhelming.

Family violence an endemic: Health worker

Mt Hagen General Hospital Section Supervisor for Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Sister Edith Namba made this statement during the opening of a new Family Support Centre (FSC) at the hospital on Thursday. 

Sr Namba said the facility would provide a confidential and secure setting where survivors of family and sexual violence could access the professional support they need.

“Mothers and women are dying slowly from this epidemic.

Family Support Centre opens new building

This was an initiative of the Australian Government working in partnership with the Government of Papua New Guinea.

The Family Support Service Centre will enable more women and children to access the basic health service they need.

Officiating the opening of the new building was Port Moresby General Hospital Chief Executive Officer, Dr Umesh Gupta and Australian Counsellor for Gender and Sport, Susan Fergusson.

WHO: Health workers have vital role to end gender-based violence

As reported by Port Moresby General Hospital Family Support Centre (FSC), the centre helps over 100 survivors every month and 12 new cases daily.

WHO country representative to PNG, Dr. Pieter Van Maaren says health workers must work with survivors of violence to help them stay safe and connect them to other service they may need.

Maaren said, “Health workers should ask the right questions, listen with compassion and reassure victims of violence that it is not their fault.

“They must work with stakeholders to raise awareness of the consequences of GBV.”

WHO and FSC unites to address gender-based violence

In conjunction with the 16 Days of Activism against G-B-V, the World Health Organisation (WHO) came together with the Port Moresby General Hospital’s Family Support Centre (FSC) to show their support to end gender-based violence.

Staff of WHO took the time to stand together in solidarity with c PMGH FSC to add voices to those against violence with the message “Gender-based violence is not inevitable and can be tackled”.

Pack rapes becoming common, reveals support centre

This was revealed by the Family Support Centre based at the Port Moresby General Hospital (POMGEN). 

The centre treats over 1000 survivors of domestic and sexual violence in a year, with about 40 patients a month.

The centre reports that more than half of the monthly survivors are children under the age of 16.

FSC also revealed that pack rapes and paedophile cases are becoming very common.

FSC clinical manager Tessie Soi said the figures are quite alarming, especially in NCD, which is known as a mini PNG.