Update on WiRED Community Health Workers in Kenya CHWs Continue to Grow in Knowledge and Experience Despite a Challenging Year By: Jessie Crowdy; Edited by Allison Kozicharow WiRED International brought our Community Health Worker (CHW) Training Program to Kisumu, Kenya, in 2020. Since then, CHWs have been actively tending to the health of the populations […]
This December members of the WiRED International community contributed “lunch money” donations to the Sunshine-Mitzvah Fund in order to purchase groceries and Christmas treats for more than 200 families in Kisumu, Kenya, where our community health workers provide their medical and health services.
For years, WiRED has collected small amounts of money from Board members and friends for what we call the Sunshine-Mitzvah Fund (see sidebar). Sister Bernadette Nealon and her staff at several clinical centers in Kisumu, who use WiRED’s health education programs, have covered small necessities needed by the local population with these funds. These supplements include money for medications, food for hungry children and rides to a hospital for the sick who would otherwise have to walk.
In early December the Lancet called for an urgent Africa COVID-19 plan of action to protect communities where the virus is still persistently spreading. To that end, WiRED International’s community health workers (CHWs) — graduates of WiRED’s CHW training program — continue their committed service to teach and inform communities in Kisumu, Kenya, about how to prevent and address COVID-19 and many other health concerns. WiRED CHWs provide crucial support to underserved populations with basic clinical services and in teaching first aid, health and preventative measures — knowledge that the people can then apply at home with their own families.
Meet Arlene Islas, Joe Marilo and Gary Wisser — the team that produced the WiRED International documentary “Community Health Begins with Knowledge.” The film tells the story of the launch of WiRED’s Community Health Worker (CHW) Training Program in Kenya last February.
WiRED International’s community health workers (CHWs) in Kisumu, Kenya, continue to be a beacon for their communities, providing guidance, information and support for health issues. Their work is particularly important in these pandemic times, as they provide health surveillance for other illnesses such as pneumonia and cholera which could be overlooked without their monitoring. From September 1 to September 27, 14 CHWs reached 6,679 people with health services on topics such as malnutrition, hypertension, pneumonia and HIV/AIDS.
WiRED International’s board of directors and volunteers are deeply saddened by the death of George Ochien’g Orlale on September 15, 2020. Mr. Orlale has been a member of the WiRED family for 17 years and lived in Kisumu, Kenya, one of the low-resource communities where WiRED serves.
WiRED International is pleased to announce the release of a documentary, “Community Health Begins with Knowledge.”
The film, shot on location in Kisumu, Kenya, introduces WiRED’s Community Health Worker (CHW) Training Program and demonstrates how the workers provide a critical link between underserved communities and the outside healthcare system. The story of the CHW program unfolds through interviews with the workers and footage of these trained paraprofessionals interacting with people of their communities.
WiRED International’s Community Health Workers (CHWs) in Kisumu, Kenya, continue to play an essential role in community education, providing advice on health issues as well as necessary referrals. In the final week of August, 14 CHWs reached 1,686 people, covering topics such as unsafe drinking water, COVID-19 and teenage pregnancy.
Graduates of WiRED International’s Community Health Worker (CHW) Training Program in Kisumu, Kenya, continue to play an essential role in improving the lives of those in surrounding communities. Since mid-July, 13 CHWs reached 3,360 people and covered health issues as diverse as nutrition and handwashing while also dispelling notions of how COVID-19 is spread.
In low-resource communities around the world, people often are unsure about basic health practices, such as proper handwashing techniques and safe food preparation, much less how to protect themselves from COVID-19.
WiRED International brought our Community Health Worker (CHW) Training Program to Kisumu, Kenya earlier this year, and since then graduates of the month-long course are tending to the health of the populations they serve.