How Community Health Volunteers are Saving Lives in Nairobi's Informal Settlements Using Technology

In 2022, Kisumu County partnered with Zipline to deliver anti-rabies medications via drones, in an effort to combat rabies cases from dog bites. In addition to drone medication delivery, the County also works with over 2,800 Community Health Workers to visit residents at their homes and educate them on rabies and treatment. As a result, dog-related rabies deaths dropped to zero in 2023 and recorded cases have significantly decreased.

Kano State's Zero Dose Learning Hub Community of Practice on Immunization is tackling the crisis of over 280,000 unvaccinated children in the state by coordinating across government ministries, the State House of Assembly, and community leaders to ensure immunization commitments translate into actual funding and vaccine delivery. Its effectiveness is reflected in a dramatic rise in immunization budgets. On the ground, Voluntary Community Mobilizers have helped dispel myths about vaccines.

AI software BabyChecker is a portable ultrasound tool that can be accessed through smartphones and allows community health workers to easily and quickly detect pregnancy risks in rural areas where access to care is difficult. So far, over 20 community health workers have been trained to use the technology, and more than 2,000 pregnant women have been scanned using the BabyChecker app.

The Boresha afya ya mama na mtoto (improve the health of mother and child) program works to reduce maternal and infant mortality rates by connecting mothers with community health volunteers. These volunteers provide important education on topics like antenatal care and also help to increase access to immunization services. When the group formed in 2018, 531 women died during childbirth or pregnancy, but as of 2023, that number has dropped to 344 thanks to the program’s initiatives.

The Community Reorientation Women Network (CRoWN) initiative is working to increase immunization rates among children by leveraging trained community volunteers to identify zero-dose children and help connect them and their families with vaccination resources. Three months into the initiative’s pilot phase, CRoWN volunteers managed to reach 99% of identified zero-dose children, leading to increased vaccination rates among youth.

In Bauchi, Nigeria, Community Health Influencers, Promoters and Services (CHIPS) conduct home visits, screen for hypertension, and detect tropical diseases in communities where healthcare is hard to access. In Bauchi alone, the program has screened over 1.2 million people, identified approximately 54,000 hypertensive patients, and treated 67 cases of neglected tropical diseases within a single year.

Rwanda has implemented a comprehensive, community-driven cervical cancer prevention program combining door-to-door screening campaigns, free HPV vaccination, and health insurance reforms to cover cancer treatment. Since the initiaives launched, six districts have achieved the World Health Organization’s elimination targets, putting Rwanda on track to become the first African country to eliminate cervical cancer by 2027.

The Grassroots Smile Initiative provides complimentary cleft lip surgeries and associated care, including nutritional support, speech therapy and other treatments. Since 2005, the group has performed over 3,000 free surgeries, averaging about 150 to 200 patients each year.

The world’s first malaria vaccine was introduced in a pilot program in 2019 and found to reduce severe cases of malaria by 22%. Since then, the vaccine has been rolled out to several regions and has administered more than 1.8 million doses throughout the country, which has contributed to reducing prevalence rates from 27% in 2015, to 3.6% today.

The Health and Social Development Foundation (HESED) aims to increase access to healthcare, specifically among pregnant women and children. HESED works to bring doctors closer to communities that struggle to get care and has also created designated spaces for important care that was previously inaccessible, like OBGYN checkups. Over the last three years, more than 400 people have received checkups from the center, regardless of their insurance status.