Longitudinal analysis of the capacities of community health workers mobilized for seasonal malaria chemoprevention in Burkina Faso

• Published in: Malaria Journal
• Main Authors: Abel Bicaba, Luc Serme, Gaël Chetaille, Gountante Kombate, Alice Bila, Slim Haddad
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: BMC 2020
• Subjects: Seasonal malaria chemoprevention; Community health workers’ performance; Training; Evaluation; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Infectious and parasitic diseases; RC109-216; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12936-020-03191-y; https://doaj.org/article/c68408158da0402ca22c9556c71b104a

Abstract Background Seasonal malaria chemoprevention (SMC) relies on community health workers to distribute drugs. This study assessed: (1) the capacity of community-based distributors (CBDs) at the start and end of a campaign and from one campaign to another after training or refresher courses before each round; (2) to what extent CBDs’ experience over several campaigns contributed to measurable increase in their capacities; and (3) to what extent the training and experience of committed CBDs helped the less productive to catch up. Methods A longitudinal analysis was conducted in one Burkina Faso health district during the 2017 and 2018 campaigns. A panel including all CBDs was created. Their capacities were observed after: (1) initial training for the 2017 season; (2) refresher training for that year’s fourth round; and (3) initial training for the 2018 season. All were invited to complete a questionnaire at the end of training with 27 multiple-choice questions on their main tasks. Observers noted content coverage and conditions under which training sessions were conducted. Results The 612 CBDs showed, on average, high understanding of their tasks from the start of the annual campaigns. Tasks related to communicating with parents and reporting were best mastered. Their capacities grew from round to round and campaign to campaign, after most had undergone training and been supervised by head nurses. The greatest progress was in the technical components, considered more complex, which involved selecting eligible children, choosing the correct drug packet, and referring children to health professionals. Retaining CBDs from one round to the next benefited everyone, whatever their starting level. Groups that initially obtained the lowest scores (women, illiterates, youngest/oldest) progressed the most. Conclusion These results confirm the potential of using CBDs under routine programme implementation. Mandating CBDs with targeted tasks is a functional model, as they achieve mastery in this context where investments ...