CHW Central

A global resource for and about Community Health Workers

South Africa

A realist perspective on optimizing community health workers’ roles and functions to deliver integrated people-centred care

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This study explored how community health workers (CHWs) in rural South Africa deliver care that focuses on people’s needs. It found that trust, legitimacy, and motivation are key to helping CHWs connect with communities and coordinate services. These work best when CHWs have proper supervision, are part of the formal health system, and collaborate with other sectors. However, … [Read more...] about A realist perspective on optimizing community health workers’ roles and functions to deliver integrated people-centred care

Home-Based Care for Hypertension in Rural South Africa

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This study tested home-based care for people with high blood pressure in South Africa. Adults were split into three groups: standard clinic care, home care with CHW visits and remote nurse support, and an enhanced version where blood pressure readings were sent automatically. After six months, both home care groups had much lower blood pressure and better control rates than the … [Read more...] about Home-Based Care for Hypertension in Rural South Africa

Contributions of a community health worker program in improving district health system performance in South Africa, using routine health service variables in a quasi-experimental study design

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This study looked at how large-scale community health worker (CHW) programs affect health services in urban South Africa. Over nine years, clinics with strong CHW coverage were compared to those with little or no CHW involvement. Both improved, but clinics with CHWs saw bigger gains in areas like child health, HIV and TB testing, nutrition, and cervical cancer screening. The … [Read more...] about Contributions of a community health worker program in improving district health system performance in South Africa, using routine health service variables in a quasi-experimental study design

Supporting community health workers in South Africa for context-specific food and nutrition literacy: implementation of a multi-media education-entertainment intervention

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This study tested whether comics and short video clips shared through mobile platforms could improve food and nutrition knowledge among community health workers in South Africa. After six months, participants showed better skills in meal preparation, planning, and overall nutrition literacy. The results suggest that multimedia education can be a useful tool to strengthen CHWs’ … [Read more...] about Supporting community health workers in South Africa for context-specific food and nutrition literacy: implementation of a multi-media education-entertainment intervention

Improving Community Health Program: Perspective of Community Health Workers in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

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This study explored what community health workers (CHWs) in Buffalo City, South Africa, need to do their jobs better. Through interviews and focus groups with 23 CHWs, they suggested support such as transport, regular training, better communication tools, work IDs for recognition, and more resources to reduce heavy workloads. They also stressed the need for permanent, paid jobs … [Read more...] about Improving Community Health Program: Perspective of Community Health Workers in the Eastern Cape, South Africa