Volunteer community health workers (CHWs) are one approach to addressing the health workforce shortage in developing countries. BRAC, a large NGO in Bangladesh, is a pioneer in using female volunteer CHWs as core workers in its successful health programmes. After 25 years of implementing the CHW model in rural areas, BRAC is now using CHWs in urban slums of Dhaka through … [Read more...] about Retention of female volunteer community health workers in Dhaka urban slums: a case-control study
Human Resources Management/Workforce Development
Global Health Evidence Summit: Community and Formal Health System Support for Enhanced Community Health Worker Performance
The global shortage of skilled, motivated, and supported health workers is universally acknowledged as a barrier to achieving the Millennium Development Goals. The World Health Report 2006, “Working Together for Health,” estimated that there is a shortage of 4.3 million health workers in the world. To help alleviate this shortage, many countries are implementing … [Read more...] about Global Health Evidence Summit: Community and Formal Health System Support for Enhanced Community Health Worker Performance
Consultation on Improving Access to Health Worker at the Frontline for Better Maternal and Child Survival
This report summarizes the Consultation on Improving Access to Health Workers at the Frontline for Better Maternal and Child Survival held in Nairobi, Kenya from 25th to 27th June 2012. The overarching objective of the consultation was to speed up and scale up country responses to the human resource needs of the UN Global Strategy for Women’s and Children’s Health (Every Woman … [Read more...] about Consultation on Improving Access to Health Worker at the Frontline for Better Maternal and Child Survival
CHWs and other FLHW: Moving from Fragmentation to Synergy to achieve Universal Health Coverage
From the early years of primary health care, community-based health workers and volunteers (CHWs) have played a key role in satisfying the need and demand for essential health services. This article proposes that CHWs need to be supported and recognized as a pivotal part of health care. CHW programmes need be comprehensive rather than vertical and they should rely on both the … [Read more...] about CHWs and other FLHW: Moving from Fragmentation to Synergy to achieve Universal Health Coverage
We Are Health Curriculum
We Are Health Curriculum is a capacity-building curriculum for CHWs that was designed by staff at the CCC. The curriculum is based on the core roles and competencies identified in the National Community Health Advisor Study. … [Read more...] about We Are Health Curriculum