Pacific Global Health Conference: A unique forum for highlighting the health issues of Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders

The Pacific Global Health Conference is a biennial meeting sponsored by the Hawaii Public Health Association in association with several national and regional partners, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Health Resources and Services Administration, the Office of Minority Health, the University of Hawaii's John A. Burns School of Medicine, the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii, the National Cancer Institute's Cancer Information Service, Hawaii State Department of Health, the Hawaii Primary Care Association and the Pacific Islands Primary Care Association, the Asian Pacific Islanders American Health Forum, and the Native Hawaiian Health Care Systems. The 2007 conference brought together 300 academics, educators, policymakers, and practitioners from across the Pacific region to share research, discuss current issues, develop strategies for the future, and increase avenues of communication across this widespread geographic and cultural area. The 2007 conference was been organized around three major themes identified as critical by the conference steering committee and regional health organizations, and these included; workforce training and development; promoting evidence-based practice; and emerging health issues for the Pacific. This focus emphasized the shared purposes of health professionals, researchers and educators that are working to address health disparities experienced by Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders, both in their countries of origin, as well as in the U.S. This poster presentation highlights the wealth of information presented at the conference, and recommendations for future action to reduce health disparities in pacific Island populations.