The 15 islands of the Cook Islands are spread over 2 million square kilometers of the Pacific and as such, brings its own challenges of being dispersed over vast distances. The different culture of each island adds to this. With the main 80 bed hospital on Rarotonga and a 20 bed hospital on Aitutaki, the other 12 inhabited islands have health centers, with health staff to meet the day-to-day requirements of the resident population. The Cook Islands Ministry of Health will continue to strive to meet the health needs of the entire nation.