UNAIR NEWS – East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa as the General Chairperson of the Universitas Airlangga Alumni Association (IKA UNAIR), officially inaugurated the Central Java Regional Board on Saturday, April 11, 2026, at the UTC Convention Hotel. The ceremony served as a vital forum for fortifying alumni synergy in support of national development, with a strategic focus on the healthcare sector.
A significant majority of the newly inducted officers are medical professionals, primarily physicians. The prominent presence of healthcare experts within the IKA UNAIR Central Java leadership underscores the substantial role alumni play in reinforcing medical services across the Indonesian archipelago. Beyond serving as a platform for professional networking, the association is expected to generate pragmatic solutions to complex national challenges.
Alumni urged to bridge gaps in medical services
In her keynote address, Governor Parawansa urged alumni to assume leadership roles in addressing the uneven distribution of quality healthcare throughout Indonesia. She maintained that the nation required a collaborative framework, linking higher education institutions with their alumni networks to ensure that essential medical services are accessible to all segments of society.
She further advocated for a breakthrough in medical education by strengthening integrated approaches between clinical training and the national healthcare system. Such a model ensured that medical graduates were not only academically distinguished but also prepared to meet the immediate, practical needs of the public.
“Healthcare education in Indonesia has evolved from a hospital-based model to a university-based one. Currently, the government, via the Ministry of Health, is working to re-integrate hospital-based training without diminishing the critical role of university-based education,” she stated.
Strategic personnel distribution as a pillar of national resilience
Governor Parawansa also highlighted the persistent shortage of medical specialists, particularly in the “4T” regions (frontier, outermost, disadvantaged, and transmigration areas). She observed that these remote locales continued to face significant barriers in accessing specialized care.
She elucidated that the equitable distribution of specialists remained a critical indicator for improving the Human Development Index (HDI). The deployment of competent healthcare providers to underserved regions directly influenced the overall quality of life and long-term societal stability.
Furthermore, Governor Parawansa asserted that healthcare equity is a fundamental component of national resilience. She emphasized that the caliber of a nation’s human resources depends on a foundation of education, health, and social welfare. “When these three pillars are effectively maintained, systemic issues such as poverty and unemployment can be significantly mitigated,” she concluded.
Author: Dheva Yudistira Maulana
Editor: Yulia Rohmawati