PORTALJABAR, BANDUNG CITY - Samantha Dewi Erwan Setiawan, Chairperson of the West Java Family Welfare Movement (PKK) Team (TP PKK), is pushing for the strengthening of clinical psychologist competencies in community health centers and hospitals. The goal is to improve the quality of mental health services for the community.

This was conveyed by Samantha when attending the opening of the Workshop on Strengthening the Competence of Clinical Psychologists at Health Centers and Hospitals in Practice and the Role as Field Clinical Supervisors at the Health Training UPTD of the West Java Provincial Health Office, Bandung City, Saturday (18/7/2026).

The workshop was attended by representatives of clinical psychologists from community health centers and hospitals in districts/cities throughout West Java.

This activity aims to improve the competence of clinical psychologists in professional practice while strengthening their role as field clinical supervisors to support quality mental health services.

"We hope this event will be beneficial for all of us, especially for those representing hospitals and community health centers in West Java. We wish you all the best and thank you to all the participants," said Samantha.

On the same occasion, the Regional Secretary of West Java Province, Herman Suryatman, emphasized that strengthening the competence of clinical psychologists must be accompanied by expanding the reach of services to directly reach the community.

"Clinical psychologists don't wait for people to come to them; they can't. They have to go out into the community and provide counseling. That's why clinical psychologists' competencies are so relevant, not to seek comfort zones, no," he stressed.

According to Herman, West Java still faces social challenges, with a poverty rate of 6.78 percent and unemployment of 6.64 percent, spread across 27 regencies/cities, 627 sub-districts, 5,312 villages, and 645 sub-districts. He hopes clinical psychologists can be present at community health centers in all 5,312 villages.

He also invited all clinical psychologists to continue improving their competencies so they can address various mental health issues in society.

Chair of the Clinical Psychology College, Indria Laksmi Gamayanti, hopes that West Java can become a pioneer in strengthening clinical psychology services at the community health center level through various ongoing training programs.

"Through various training programs, psychologists are expected to be better prepared to carry out their roles and become closer to the community," he said.

According to him, improving competence is an important step so that clinical psychologists are able to provide professional services while also addressing various mental health issues faced by the community.

He also appreciated the West Java Provincial Government for facilitating training for clinical psychologists as part of efforts to improve the quality of human resources in the health sector.

"This step is expected to be a good start in providing increasingly competent psychologists for the benefit of the people of West Java," said Indria.

WEST JAVA PUBLIC RELATIONS
Head of the Communication and Information Service of West Java Province
Adi Komar