LSTM’s Dr Miriam Taegtmeyer has been talking at a symposium about community health in Kenya, which is the launch event for a new initiative to embed and study quality improvement interventions in eight counties in Kenya.
USAID SQALE brings together REACHOUT partners LVCT Health and LSTM with a new partner, University Research Company (URC), and is a three year project to improve maternal and child health through a focus on community health systems in Kenya. In the face of a complex range of factors which effect women and children’s access to services, the Kenyan government and non-governmental organisations have made a commitment to community health. The work will be carried out by Community Health Extension Workers who will train volunteers, and supervise them. Chosen by the community themselves, these Community Health Volunteers will provide a vital first link between the community and health services.
USAID SQALE will support this effort through the process of quality improvement that includes capacity building and community engagement. The project aims to strengthen leadership and coordination at national, county and community levels by embedding a culture of quality improvement practice.
The Symposium launching the project took place at the Kenya School of Monetary Studies. The theme of the symposium was ‘Bridging the Quality Gap - Strengthening Quality Improvement in Community Health Services’ and brought together stakeholders within Kenya who are concerned with quality assurance and quality improvement processes in community health to enable mutual learning and support the process of advocating for investment in community health services in Kenya.