Today we traveled to Kambai to meet up with 115 CHWs who were gathering to receive their stipend and learn proper breastfeeding techniques to combat child malnutrition.
We first met with a midwife who has been working in Kambai clinic for 6 years. She described to us that more women are coming into the clinic for STIs rather than UTIs. This gave us some insight on what disease to focus our test strips on next, after we have launched UTI strips. She stated that her main challenge was the tools she’s given to work with and how difficult it is to get women to come to the clinic to give birth. Her goal is to encourage more women to give birth in the clinic. She also said that more women give birth in the dry season, rather than the wet. Therefore, we hope to have Ukweli up and running before the next dry season.
At the same clinic, we then met with 9 peer supervisors. Most of them were in charge of managing 7 CHWs. Some were from extremely rural areas and reported to Community Health Posts (CHPs). Others came from more urban areas, reporting to Community Health Units (CHUs). They told us that their main challenge was communication to other CHWs (they have to travel so far just to reach them). They stated that they do monthly meetings with CHWs to make sure they are performing their job duties correctly and efficiently.
When we asked them about how much CHWs should charge people of their community for test strips, they said about 1,000 leones ($0.13).
Our translator Hassan and the 9 peer supervisors.
We later toured the lab facilities to see how test strips are stored at a clinic. The lab technician showed us they all stored in a small cabinet. He then showed us where the medicine for patients is stored, shown in the picture below.
After, the CHO of the clinic took us to a bench where about 60-70 CHWs were gathered. It was extremely intense because we were not expecting that big of crowd to present in front of. Most stated that their challenges as a CHW are transportation, late stipend payment, lack of equipment (no lights to help deliver babies in the night), lack of communication with peer supervisor and having to leave their daily work/tasks (ex: farmer leaving for long period of time=food gets spoiled) to treat members of their community. They all agreed that 1,000 Leones was what they should be charging community members, but they would have to consider the current season (wet or dry).
Sage, Cassidy and Naakesh with the CHWs.
Naakesh and Sage outside the clinic (it is undergoing construction).
Later, we interviewed a Travel Birth Attendant (TBA). She has been working a TBA for 6 years and has had no casualties (such an amazing woman!). She said that she was inspired to become a TBA when she was giving birth to her own children. Two people would sit down on the stomach and pound on it while she was in labor, to try and get the baby out. She said this method led to many of her friends and their unborn children to pass. Because of how awful this method was, she became inspired to make a difference and improve maternal and infant mortality rates. She got certified by the red cross to become a TBA and has been working ever since.
