Region Ten CHWs exposed to skills enhancing training

Jan 11, 2019 News

Even as national efforts are being employed to improve the delivery of health care, Region Ten has been exploring aggressive tactics to advance its health care services.

Senior Health visitor acting [ag] for Region Ten, Ms. Karen King.

Some 40 Community Health Workers [CHWs] from various health centres in Region Ten are currently attending a three-day Expanded Programme on Immunisation [EPI] meeting and training workshop.
The two-pronged event, which is being held at the Len Conference room, forms part of the health services 2019 programme to further enhance the educational and technical skills of the targeted health workers.
According to Region Ten’s Senior Health Visitor [ag], Ms. Karen King, the three-day review forum is usually held on a quarterly basis. Such meetings, she said, are important since they give insight to better understanding the achievements and challenges that the health workers face.
“For the three days we will be looking at several issues, among them the vaccination coverage for the health centres and health posts within Region Ten. We will also be doing a training workshop as we seek to improve the skills and knowledge of our Community Health Workers as they are our partners in addressing healthcare effectively within the region,” King informed.
According to her, addressing shortcomings in the delivery of health care is pivotal if continued successes are to be realised within the region.
King said that one of the major challenges facing several of the CHWs is the issue of effective reporting thus the workshop is aimed at improving their skills to better report on the tasks they are assigned.
She noted that since several of the health workers’ reports are not done properly, in terms of how they should be submitted, deliberate efforts have been made to incorporate a segment to educate them on the appropriate format and style that should be adhered to. “We have found that several of the reports submitted by the CHWs are not done properly or to the standards that have been established. Therefore, we are hoping to use part of the workshop to ensure that we can inform and sensitize them on how they need to go about in doing their reports because it is very important,” King stressed.

Several of the participants attending the three day meeting

She added that enhancing their skills in report writing and compilation is critically, noting that it is the very report submitted by the various health centres and health posts that are used to compile the regional reports which are submitted to the Ministry of Public Health. This, she said, is done to ascertain the performance or status of the region nationally.
With improved report writing, King said that it would certainly reduce several of the flaws and difficulties with the reports submitted.
Meanwhile, Regional Executive Officer [REO], Orrin Gordon, stressed the need for the CHWs to continue enhancing and improving their education even as he reminded that they play a critical role within the health sector of Region Ten. He told the eager participants that they should remain cognisant of this fact.
He went on to urge them to seize every possibility of improving themselves, noting that they need to continue increasing their education as it is the only way in ensuring that they remain effective and efficient.
“You have a responsibility to help in delivering health care within the region and it’s important that you do not lose sight of this focus as health care is your sector and you are expected to be the best that you can be.
“However, let me remind you that you must see the need and importance of improving your education. You must see the need and urgency of enhancing your professional outlook as when you see the need, you will take the appropriate steps in taking yourself to another level,” he told the CHWs.
Gordon said that advancing one’s education does not necessarily mean physically attending an institution, but rather further empowering one’s self with knowledge and understanding. “Reading and research is important in advancing one’s education and this is very important as everyone should read a lot so as to keep themselves abreast with what is happening within their own field. As such, you don’t all have to be going off to university at once but remember education is important to your development,” the REO asserted.