Home-based healthcare delivery for tuberculosis, malaria, and HIV patients in Uganda

Community Service

This study analyzes the activities which I participated during my home-based care program. It further state challenges which came by and how they were addressed. I also emphasize how various activities were sub-divided among the team. The study also states the process through the team used to implement various activities according the schedule given the USAID. It finally states the monitoring and evaluation method which was used by the team, to determine the effect of the activities.

(i) Introduction -(1)

(iii) Planning -(3)

(iv) Coordination (Resource and Personnel -(4)

(v) Implementation-(5)

(vi) Activities -(6)

(vii) Monitoring and Evaluations-(8)

The developing countries especially from Africa region face a major challenge from increase health care cost. Therefore, accessing better health services is major issues which major international Non-governmental organizations can't leave unaddressed. Besides, there is a trend in continue short hospital stay for patient due to lack of enough nurses and proper accommodations. Therefore health interventions are carried out within communities (homes-based health care), to ensure that there are better care for victims at their homes, overall health issues are well taken care of.

During the previous holiday, I got an opportunity to travel to Uganda in East Africa, where I worked with a group of twenty people in provide home-based healthcare to Tuberculosis (TB), Malaria and HIV patients. Fortunately, there was an elaborate model for comprehensive community based and home-based health care in place. This plan was developed by the USAID in collaboration with government of Uganda to ensure better accessibility to health and quality community health care to home-based patients.

As a volunteer, I was responsible for coming up with a timetable for the activities, coordinating other home-based volunteers, facilitating the delivery of drugs, provide food stuffs and water. Again, I was also responsible for organizing home visit and outing to various parks with patients. In addition, the team also played a counsel role to the patients. We provided daily counsel to every patient on various issues depending on the patient's needs.

However, the home-based care project was started by the USAID in partnership with the government of Uganda with a vision to fill the void of poor accommodations and few nurses in hospitals. It had a clear objective in promoting a healthy lifestyle and preventing illness by motivating and supporting members of the community to proactively maintain and resist threats to their health. Self-care reliance of the individual, family and community, and proper health-seeking behaviors are the expected outcomes.

Goals

To ensure better accessibility of effective and efficient health care in the community and home-based setting and to improve health and well being of patients.

To bring brightness on the faces of many patients by providing love, attention and care to the HIV and TB patients at home.

Planning

The table below shows the whole planning of the various activities which were carried by the team during the time of home-based care.

No

Description

Time

Outcome

1

Meeting local with USAID representative local hospital nurses, counselors and community leaders.

The whole group members

1st week

Introduction of the team to the community, nurses and various agencies, working with home-based health care program.

Familiarize with the responsibility and division of tasks among the team.

Electing team leader and briefing on his/her work.

Booking of hotels rooms for accommodation.

Introduction to local food supplier and clinics responsible for drug supply.

2

Visit to home-based care center for the first time. Accompanied by representative from USAID, community nurse and a local leader.

The whole group

2nd week

Understand the main health issues affecting patients.

Identify the core area to work on to provide overall health support to the patients.

Develop a timetable of activities with team and work on implementation modality.

3

The work of the team begins immediately.

Whole team

2nd week

Provide drugs and food to the patients

Efficient offering guarding and counseling.

Hanging out every week with patients

Playing different kind of games together.

Organizing various health trainings to the patients and community.

The planning indicates the activities which were carried immediately the team arrived in Uganda. This was to prepare us psychologically for the task a head. Each of the activity was executed in collaboration with the local communities and representatives from the USAID as indicated in the table.

After planning and execution of the first phase of familiarizing with the community and other local leaders, the leaders elected amongst us were tasked to coordinate the entire program and report to the USAID coordinator. It happened that I was one of the leaders elected to spearhead the program. As a volunteer coordinator, I managed to work closely with all team members to draw the activities and implementation plan for the period we were there.

Coordination Resources & Personnel

The financial resources were provided by the USAID Uganda, which was used for implementation of the whole program. The whole team was tasked with specific responsibility to do and later report to their team leader. Each team leader was to submit weekly report to me, as the general leader.

4

Morning

This model of activity placed patients/clients at home-based care at the centre of care and acknowledges the contributions that individuals, groups and communities make in achieving and maintaining their health, and managing illness throughout the lifespan. It provides an overall framework, and includes systems and processes that can be adapted to meet the needs and priorities of local communities. it, however, builds on the existing health care system that is available in the community, and aims to make essential care for priority health problems more accessible to the needy, such as Directly Observed Treatment, Short-course (DOTS) for the treatment of tuberculosis (TB) and home-based AIDS care in support strategy

This model was developed with the active involvement of team members. It was based on good practices within homes and outside to the general community. The field test revealed that this model is a useful managerial tool to assist home-based health care volunteer in strengthening their existing community health services and within peoples.

Monitoring and Evaluation of Goal

Monitoring and Evaluation mechanism were put in place to ensure that activities carried out are in line with the plan. and, to ensure that incase of any deviation occur, corrective actions are taken immediately. Feedbacks were also established so patients under home-based care could respond to the kind of services they receive from the team. In providing elaborate evaluation, facets were used so that the contributions to the community health care program, and the process and outcome of implementation to be determined accurately. However, the following methods were also used in carrying out evaluation:

Checking how active they engage in the activities in comparison with the first time.

Analyzed the opinion of the community and home-based patient through interviews.

Analyze feedbacks from the community.

Determine the general awareness of the community on what we were doing.

Determine the community eagerness to participate on the program

At the end of the program report was subjected to the USAID together with evaluation report.