New Mid-South clinic helps kids from missing yearly check-ups

Being in a conflict zone, primary healthcare in the state of Borno in Nigeria has suffered in recent years. In response to the crisis, Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) centers provide Ready-To-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) to treat children with severe acute malnutrition (SAM). The centers also work in tandem with Community Nutrition Mobilizers (CNMs) to follow up with mothers to ensure that the children are taking the medicine, to educate them on malnutrition in children, and to offer other primary care provisions like immunizations.

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.

New Mexico’s veterans are getting faster care as new programs expand to rural areas. Thanks to a host of initiatives, including telemedicine, contracts with community clinics, and travel benefits, the state’s VA health care system has recently seen improvements in appointment wait times for veterans.

To reach more Nigerians who are used to self-medicating their ailments with whatever is available at the pharmacy, PureLife Health opened two CareHub Minute Clinics within Lagos pharmacy locations, offering diagnostic and consultation services with a doctor for common health concerns. Since the hubs launched, more than 4,000 people have accessed the clinics, with about 10 percent of patients being referred to a hospital or specialist for further treatment.

Ekiti State, Nigeria, implemented a coordinated three-pronged approach that reduced neonatal, infant, and under-five mortality rates by more than 50% over five years, saving approximately 45,000 children's lives. The response combined strengthening the medical supply chain, increasing demand for care by engaging with community leaders and holding weekly meetings with health system stakeholders.

Doctors and nurses with the Sickle Cell Foundation Nigeria provide free specialized care to over 5,000 people at a local hospital. An annual CT scan monitors patients' risk of stroke, with those who are high-risk getting one every three months. The CT scans are provided at a highly subsidized cost because the machine was donated to the hospital. Patients with leg ulcers, a common ailment, are treated three times a week and given free supplies to clean wounds at home. The foundation does outreach to rural areas, where they have provided education, genetic counseling, and medical services to over 8,000 people.

Doctors Without Borders treats malnutrition in areas of Nigeria facing food shortages due to violence and insurgency. When safe, it runs a mobile clinic to provide basic health care, including nutritional support, particularly to children. When communities are not safe enough to enter, the organization trains community members in basic patient care and provides them the tools to run basic tests and treat malnutrition. Community health workers are also trained to treat patients, dispense medications, and educate caregivers about child nutrition.

Community health workers are engaging small business owners to host local COVID-19 vaccination clinics. These smaller clinics, like La Fama 2 Barbershop, are effective because of the strength of interpersonal relationships. At the barber shop, the atmosphere is relaxed and the owner knows the needs of his customers. To make the information and vaccines accessible to the local Latino community, the clinic held Saturday afternoon hours and community health workers were present with information in Portuguese and Spanish. It helps for friends and families to get vaccinated together, among people they trust.

Volunteers with India’s Meds For More initiative (MFM) collect leftover unused medications from recovered Covid-19 patients by canvassing their apartment buildings, offices, student clubs, schools, and other locations. Once collected, MFM distributes them to NGOs licensed to work in the health sector, who transport the medicines to marginalized communities in urban and rural areas. Medical professionals sort and pack the medicines and give them to local hospitals and health care centers, who distribute them to patients. The success of the program has inspired similar initiatives in several other cities.

Because of coordinated partnerships between local governments, state health departments, and nonprofit groups, more and more farmworkers are receiving COVID-19 vaccinations. Through the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Farmworker Health program and its partners, nearly 14,000 doses were administered to the farmworker community over two months. Advocates also have to dispel rumors and myths about the vaccines, but they are working to combat that misinformation and make it easier for them to get vaccinated.