TY - JOUR
T1 - Experiences engaging community health workers to provide maternal and newborn health services
T2 - Implementation of four programs
AU - Haver, Jaime
AU - Brieger, William
AU - Zoungrana, Jérémie
AU - Ansari, Nasratullah
AU - Kagoma, Jean
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. on behalf of International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics.
PY - 2015/6/1
Y1 - 2015/6/1
N2 - A paucity of skilled health providers is a considerable impediment to reducing maternal, infant, and under-five mortality for many low-resource countries. Although evidence supports the effectiveness of community health workers (CHWs) in delivering primary healthcare services, shifting tasks to this cadre from providers with advanced training has been pursued with overall caution - both because of difficulties determining an appropriate package of CHW services and to avoid overburdening the cadre. We reviewed programs in Rwanda, Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Nepal where tasks in delivery of health promotion information and distribution of commodities were transitioned to CHWs to reach underserved populations. The community-based interventions were complementary to facility-based interventions as part of a comprehensive approach to increase access to basic health services. Drawing on these experiences, we illuminate commonalities, lessons learned, and factors contributing to the programs' implementation strategies to help inform practical application in other settings.
AB - A paucity of skilled health providers is a considerable impediment to reducing maternal, infant, and under-five mortality for many low-resource countries. Although evidence supports the effectiveness of community health workers (CHWs) in delivering primary healthcare services, shifting tasks to this cadre from providers with advanced training has been pursued with overall caution - both because of difficulties determining an appropriate package of CHW services and to avoid overburdening the cadre. We reviewed programs in Rwanda, Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Nepal where tasks in delivery of health promotion information and distribution of commodities were transitioned to CHWs to reach underserved populations. The community-based interventions were complementary to facility-based interventions as part of a comprehensive approach to increase access to basic health services. Drawing on these experiences, we illuminate commonalities, lessons learned, and factors contributing to the programs' implementation strategies to help inform practical application in other settings.
KW - Community health worker
KW - Human resources for health
KW - Maternal and newborn health
KW - Primary health care
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84937417480&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84937417480&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.ijgo.2015.03.006
DO - 10.1016/j.ijgo.2015.03.006
M3 - Article
C2 - 26115855
AN - SCOPUS:84937417480
SN - 0020-7292
VL - 130
SP - S32-S39
JO - International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics
JF - International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics
IS - S2
ER -