Results: 3069
Does task shifting yield cost savings and improve efficiency for health systems? A systematic review of evidence from low-income and middle-income countries (2017)
Research has demonstrated that task shifting, including the use of CHWs to deliver care, can improve population health. This systematic review examines whether task shifting in LMICs results in efficiency improvements by achieving cost savings. The authors identified 794 articles, and included 34 in the study. They found that substantialRead more…
A systematic review of strategies to increase access to health services among children in low and middle income countries (2017)
This systematic review examines the effectiveness of interventions aimed at increasing access to health services for children aged 5 years and below in LMIC. Fifty-seven studies were included in the review, and approximately half of studies (49%) were conducted in sub-Saharan Africa. The studies evaluated a diverse range of interventionsRead more…
Community Health Worker Programmes in the WHO African Region: Evidence and Options (2017)
The purpose of this policy brief is to inform discussions and decisions in the World Health Organization (WHO) African Region on policies, strategies and programmes to increase access to primary health care (PHC) services and make progress towards universal health coverage (UHC) by expanding the implementation of scaled-up CHW programmes.
Community health worker perspectives on a new primary health care initiative in the Eastern Cape of South Africa (2017)
This study sought to understand CHW perspectives on a new primary health initiative in South Africa called Re-engineering Primary Health Care (rPHC). This initiative aims to provide a preventive and health-promoting community-based PHC model. Focus group discussions and surveys on the knowledge and attitudes of 91 CHWs working on community-basedRead more…
Community Health Workers as Social Marketers of Injectable Contraceptives: A Case Study from Ethiopia (2017)
This study in Tigray, Ethiopia investigated the impact of a service delivery model that combined community-based distribution (CBD) of contraception with social marketing. 626 volunteer CHWs were recruited and trained to administer depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) injections, provide counseling and referrals, and promote demand for family planning through door-to-door outreachRead more…
Strengthening Human Resources for Nutrition (2017)
SPRING works to strengthen human resources for nutrition with the ultimate goal of increasing the number of formally-trained professional and frontline workers in nutrition, as prioritized by USAID’s Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Strategy 2014-15. This collection of resources includes the latest news, activities, publications, media, and events on strengthening human resources for nutrition.
The Influence of Community Health Resources on Effectiveness and Sustainability of Community and Lay Health Worker Programs in Lower-Income Countries: A Systematic Review (2017)
This review explores the current evidence available to assess if increased levels of integration of community health resources in CHW programs leads to higher program effectiveness and sustainability. 32 articles were chosen for an extensive review, complemented by analysis of the results of 15 other review studies. Analysis found noRead more…
A scorecard for assessing functionality of community health unit in Kenya (2017)
Amref Health Africa in Kenya has developed a replicable Community Health Units (CHUs) Functionality Scorecard for measuring and managing the functionality of CHUs. The scorecard was designed and piloted at 114 CHUs in Rift Valley province in Kenya. The scorecard categorized CHUs as Functional, Semi-functional, or Non-Functional. Before and afterRead more…
Effect of Community Health Strategy on Focused Antenatal Care Coverage: A Pretest-Posttest Experimental Study in Rural Mwingi West Sub-County; Kenya (2017)
In Kenya, maternal and child mortality rates are still high despite government efforts aimed at improving MCH. This study’s objective was to determine the effect of a CHW led primary health care intervention, Community Health Strategy (CHS) on focused antenatal care (FANC) in Mwingi, Kenya. Researchers employed a pretest -posttestRead more…
Stakeholder’s perspective: Sustainability of a community health worker program in Afghanistan (2017)
The objectives of this study were to examine how different stakeholders define sustainability and to identify barriers to and facilitators of the sustainability of the Afghan CHW program. 63 key informants were interviewed, and 11 focus groups were conducted with policymakers, health managers, community health workers, and community members. TheRead more…
Mobilizing Action on Violence Against Women—A Hand Book for ASHAs (2017)
This handbook provides information and tools to address violence against women. Included in the resource is a definition of different types of violence, signs and symptoms to be aware of, consequences of violence against women, the role of a CHW in addressing violence against women, and situations for discussion. WhileRead more…
Community Health Committees (CHCs) and Health Facility Management Committees (HFMCs) Program Functionality Assessment (2017)
This document provides tools for assessing the functionality of two types of representative health groups: the Community Health Committee (CHC) and the Health Facility Management Committee (HFMC). Tools are available to assess program functionality through documents such as a roles and responsibilities checklist, assessment and improvement matrices, a validation questionnaire,Read more…
Case Studies of Large-Scale Community Health Worker Programs (2017)
This resource from USAID and MCHIP provides an overview of large-scale CHW programs from 13 countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Brazil, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Nepal, Niger, Pakistan, Rwanda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Case studies address the historical context of CHWs, the health needs of the country, the scope of work of the CHWs,Read more…
Community Health Worker Nutrition Advocacy Tool (2017)
SPRING, in collaboration with USAID, has created a new CHW Nutrition Advocacy Tool, which consists of a series of PowerPoint slides with important data regarding key nutrition responsibilities for CHWs. Information in these slides identify current gaps in nutrition service delivery and advocates for increased commitment to nutrition in communityRead more…
Implementation research on community health workers’ provision of maternal and child health services in rural Liberia (2017)
This paper assesses the change in the use of essential maternal and child health services in Konobo, Liberia after the implementation of an enhanced CHW program. Last Mille Health, a nongovernmental organization, partnered with the Liberian Ministry of Health to pilot the CHW program. The program had enhanced recruitment, training,Read more…
Who is a community health worker? — a systematic review of definitions (2017)
This review article explores the various definitions and descriptions of CHWs in the literature. It also identifies common themes in these definitions to better understand the essential characteristics of health workers classified as CHWs and to distinguish them from other healthcare providers. By describing the various categories of CHWs, thisRead more…
Management challenges in mHealth: failures of a mobile community health worker surveillance programme in rural Nepal (2016)
The emerging field of mobile health (mHealth) consists of interventions that apply cellular phones and other mobile devices for healthcare purpose such as data collection, clinical decision support, self-care, and CHW management. This rapid expansion of mobile communications systems represents an opportunity to improve the productivity of community health workersRead more…
Effect of community health worker-provided targeted education with regular follow-up of hypertensive patients on blood pressure control: 24-month results of a longitudinal study in Bangladesh (2016)
This longitudinal study aims to assess the effect of CHW-provided targeted education on blood pressure (BP) control in hypertensive patients in Bangladesh. Trained CHWs regularly followed up and provided specific health messages on BP control to adult hypertensive individuals through quarterly meetings and individual counseling. Mean BP changes were measuredRead more…
A comprehensive description of three national community health worker programs and their contributions to maternal and child health and primary health care (2017)
This is an in-depth review of the effectiveness of CHW programs in Ethiopia, Brazil, and Nepal. The main objective of this report is to provide insight and examples of successful CHW programs for other countries that are looking to build and strengthen their own CHW programs, specifically in the maternalRead more…
CHW Resources (2016)
A Community Health Worker (CHW) is a public health worker that is committed to improving the quality and accessibility of healthcare and social services in a community. The CDC has compiled a webpage with resources collected from their projects across the organization related to CHWs. This page serves as an excellentRead more…
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