Revitalizing & Retaining Village Health Teams
Supporting and Building the capacity of Village health teams.
Maimuna Nabirye became a Village Health Team (VHT) in 2013, and she continues to serve her community in Lulyambuzi Parish in Wankole Sub-County. Maimuna currently resides in Lutebe, a Village in Lulyambuzi Parish, Kamuli District. She decided to become a VHT to be able to gain more knowledge and play a much more significant role in improving the healthcare access of her fellow community members.
Since becoming a VHT, Maimuna has impacted her community through the emphasis on the proper use of latrines, mobilization of community members during 'health days' to ensure that all children are vaccinated, leading community outreach events and programs that seek to prevent HIV and Malaria infections, and a host of others. According to Maimuna these efforts have " helped improve the sanitation and hygiene, and also sensitized community members about the benefits of child immunization".
As a VHT, Maimuna faces many challenges, including a lack of effective means of transportation, teaching materials, training workshops to improve her skills, and a lack of support. Because of her utmost commitment to volunteerism, she has managed to diligently perform her duties in the absence of these essential resources.
Since becoming a VHT, Maimuna has impacted her community through the emphasis on the proper use of latrines, mobilization of community members during 'health days' to ensure that all children are vaccinated, leading community outreach events and programs that seek to prevent HIV and Malaria infections, and a host of others. According to Maimuna these efforts have " helped improve the sanitation and hygiene, and also sensitized community members about the benefits of child immunization".
As a VHT, Maimuna faces many challenges, including a lack of effective means of transportation, teaching materials, training workshops to improve her skills, and a lack of support. Because of her utmost commitment to volunteerism, she has managed to diligently perform her duties in the absence of these essential resources.
CenRID's Vitamin Supplementation & Deworming (VAS+D) training workshops, which is an important aspect of our ongoing Vitamins+Minerals Project, have successfully enhanced the skills of Maimuna and her other colleagues in Vitamin A administration and the benefits of prenatal vitamins supplementation. Our strategy is focused on utilizing VHTs to address the nutritional deficiencies of children and expectant mothers, challenge discriminatory norms that inhibit women and children to achieve better nutritional outcomes, and strengthen healthcare delivery and access using CenRID's referral and Linkage system.
With support from CenRID, Maimuna and her colleagues have played an important role in helping the country make considerable progress in its efforts to reach the Child Day Plus (CDP) targeted coverage rates. She expects to be provided with gumboots, a bicycle, a first aid kit, and other necessary materials she needs to make her work easier.
"The VAS+D workshops have been very beneficial to VHTs, pregnant women, and children. I expect CenRID to continue to equip me with the necessary skills and resources I need to continue helping my community members"
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