Elevating Country Voices
Hear from the frontlines of community health. Find stories and interviews of community health workers and community health program managers that will deepen understanding of their crucial function delivering lifesaving care to communities.
Rural health transformation by Community Health Volunteers. A case for Mangu Community Health unit, Nakuru County, Kenya.
Community Health Workers (CHWs) play a key role in ensuring that health services reach the most vulnerable populations who are often in remote and hard-to-reach areas. Being part of the community they serve offers CHWs a deeper understanding of the challenges that the communities face, and they are also best placed to be part of the solutions. CHWs have the ability to support the formal health care system, which is battling an increasing epidemic of diseases in the global effort to attain Universal Health Coverage. They accomplish this by closing the gap in the health workforce and making sure that accessible,…
Community Health Workers: The Lifeline of Primary Health Care in Kenya
Community health workers (CHWs) will play a critical role in the success of Kenya’s primary health care (PHC) approach. PHC is a comprehensive and integrated approach to health care that aims to provide accessible, affordable, and quality health services to individuals and communities. CHWs will be key to the approach’s success as they bridge the health system and communities, ensuring that health services reach those who need them most. In 2019, the government of Kenya launched the Primary Health Care Strategic Framework 2019-2024, which aims to provide access to quality and affordable healthcare services for all Kenyans. The framework emphasizes…
A year like no other for Nairobi City County Community Health Workforce
“The greatest asset of a company is its people.”- Jorge Paulo Lemann (Co-founder, Banco Garantia) With the incoming of new county leadership and building on the existing goodwill of the former government to strengthen an integrated community health service, the County government of Nairobi has huge commitments and strides towards a community health service that is functional and sustainable while remaining a critical component in advancing Universal Health Coverage. Key to note is the commitment to allocating funds for a Community Health Volunteer (CHV) stipend for 7460 CHVs The County community health services has 7460 community health volunteers spread across…
From Our Partners
Why counties must invest in community health services
Africa Frontline First is an initiative to fund community health programs in sub-Saharan Africa. While this initiative aims to deploy 200,000 professional CHWs by 2030, existing community health volunteers lack essential resources and financial incentives. In this piece, two CHVs from Kenya discuss why county governments must invest in community health services.
–> read more at Nation Africa
How health workers are leading Africa’s COVID-19 response
Community health workers have long responded to disease outbreaks while maintaining lifesaving services. In this September 2021 opinion piece, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia’s president from 2006 to 2018, and Dr. John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, share their thoughts on investments that should be prioritized to end the COVID-19 pandemic and realize health for all.
–> read more at Devex
COVID-19 highlights the need for community health
Over recent years, the world has faced two Ebola outbreaks, the constant threat of pandemic influenza, and now the global spread of novel coronavirus and the COVID-19 pandemic. In developing countries, these threats risk exacerbating existing high burdens of communicable diseases associated with millions of preventable deaths. Community health is essential for pandemic preparedness (prevention, surveillance, response) and remains essential for achieving the World Health Organization’s Sustainable Development Goals. The global scale and impact of the current pandemic demonstrates that this cuts across geographies, levels of income, and types of health systems.
–> read more at Think Global Health