August 2nd, 2018 visit to Kambai and Binkolo

Today we first met with the head of the PHUs of Kambai. His name is Abdul K. Kamara, and have gave us a good amount of insight on to how to develop and integrate our venture in Bombali and Kareneh districts. He was familiar with Ukweli, and stressed that maintaining patient confidentiality should be well emphasized in the training that we provide CHWs. He told us a lot about how medicine and supplies are distributed to different clinics that he manages. This helped us get a bit of insight on how we will distribute our test strips and the distribution chain as a whole.

After interviewing Mr. Kamara, we headed out to Binkolo PHU to meet with 5 CHWs. They were all very open and interested in the idea of Ukweli because a lot of women in their villages complain of abdominal pain. The challenges faced the most as a CHW were transportation, communication, 2-3 month delay in stipend pay, and worn out equipment/rain gear. Most travel on foot to meet with a patient, and that can be around 6 miles.

They suggested that we conduct refresher trainings every three months so new ideas and concerns can be talked about or added to the program. We gave them a sheet that described their role and responsibilities if they were to be involved in Ukweli. All of them responded positively to what we mentioned.

We later set out to meet with 4 more CHWs at Kambai. They have been working as CHWs for 1-5 years. They described similar challenges that the Binkolo CHWs faced: far distance to travel, poor communication, late stipend payments and expenses for traveling.

They explained to us how their is a stigma against CHWs created by members of their village. Many don’t understand that CHWs are volunteers, and assume that when CHWs go into other villages for training and meetings, they are going to get funding from outsiders. We hope that Ukweli can eliminate this stigma by giving CHWs screening equipment, showing the community members that the CHWs are working and getting money from them, not from outside sources.

They thought that the best way to launch Ukweli was through community engagement. This is critical in order to get women and people to pay the CHWs for strips. They must be sensitized to the problem and recognize the signs and symptoms of a UTI.