Perceptions towards management of acute malnutrition by community health volunteers in northern Kenya.

Autor:	Wambui E; African Population and Health Research Center, Nairobi, Kenya., Wilunda C; African Population and Health Research Center, Nairobi, Kenya., Donfouet HPP; African Population and Health Research Center, Nairobi, Kenya.; The World Bank Health Nutrition and Population Global Practice, Washington, DC, United States of America., Mwangi B; African Population and Health Research Center, Nairobi, Kenya., Zerfu TA; African Population and Health Research Center, Nairobi, Kenya.; International Food Policy Research Institute, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia., Daniel T; UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office, Nairobi, Kenya., Agutu O; UNICEF Kenya County Office, Nairobi, Kenya., Samburu B; Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya., Kavoo D; Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya., Karimurio L; Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya., Cuellar PC; Action Against Hunger, London, United Kingdom., Keane E; Save the Children UK, London, United Kingdom., Schofield L; Save the Children UK, London, United Kingdom., Njiru J; Save the Children International, Nairobi, Kenya., Chabi M; World Health Organization, Kenya Country Office, Nairobi, Kenya., Maina LG; UNICEF Kenya County Office, Nairobi, Kenya., Okoth P; UNICEF Kenya County Office, Nairobi, Kenya., Raburu J; UNICEF Kenya County Office, Nairobi, Kenya., Gichohi G; Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya., Mutua A; Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya., Matanda C; Ministry of Health, Nairobi, Kenya., Kimani-Murage E; African Population and Health Research Center, Nairobi, Kenya.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	PLOS global public health [PLOS Glob Public Health] 2024 May 16; Vol. 4 (5), pp. e0002564. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 May 16 (Print Publication: 2024).
DOI:	10.1371/journal.pgph.0002564
Abstrakt:	Child undernutrition is a persistent challenge in arid and semi-arid areas due to low and erratic rainfall, recurrent droughts and food insecurity. In these settings, caregivers face several challenges in accessing health services for sick and/or malnourished children, including long distances to health facilities, harsh terrain, and lack of money to pay for transportation costs to the health facilities, leading to low service coverage and sub-optimal treatment outcomes. To address these challenges and optimize treatment outcomes, the World Health Organization recommends utilizing community health volunteers (CHVs) to manage acute malnutrition in the community. This study explored the perceptions of community members regarding acute malnutrition treatment by CHVs in Turkana and Isiolo counties in Kenya. The study utilized a cross-sectional study design and included a purposive sample of caregivers of children, CHVs, officers who trained and supervised CHVs and community leaders in the intervention area. Focus group discussions and key informant interviews were used to explore perceptions towards the management of acute malnutrition by CHVs. Generally, caregivers and CHVs perceived the intervention to be beneficial as it readily addressed acute malnutrition treatment needs in the community. The intervention was perceived to be acceptable, effective, and easily accessible. The community health structure provided a platform for commodity supply and management and CHV support supervision. This was a major enabler in implementing the intervention. The intervention faced operational and systemic challenges that should be considered before scale-up. Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. (Copyright: © 2024 Wambui et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)
Databáze:	MEDLINE
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