On the Frontlines Towards Awareness Raising
Communication Team
The entire population of Fara Al-Udayn is at risk for life-threatening diseases, some of which are considered the top causes of death. These diseases disproportionately affect the poorest and least-educated families and is far more common in remote, rural areas than in urban and peri-urban areas.
Clearly, living in further reaches where people are mostly illiterate is sadly what makes them vulnerable and easily harmed by preventable diseases. However, activating multiple technical levels of health care services such as awareness sessions fully provided by community health volunteers can help reduce the threat and save a massive number of diseases susceptible civilians.
Since July 2017, Relief and Development Peer Foundation (RDP) has been implementing the “Integrated Health and Nutrition Project” in Fara Al-Udayn district targeting the most affected and vulnerable people in (Bani Ahmed – Al-Ahmol – Alaqibah) sub-districts.
As a part of the project’s activities, RDP supports over 30 community health volunteers to work on helping people through awareness raising and prevention of communicable and uncommunicable diseases. Of course, community health volunteers are on the frontlines of this effort, saving the lives of thousands of people in villages across Fara Al-Udayn district.
From February 27th, to March 12th, 2018, RDP’s CHVs, supported by three supervisors, conducted 60 awareness sessions in almost 60 villages of three sub-districts, reaching a number of 2,609 individuals disaggregated (385 Male / 2224 Female). They are trained on health and nutrition messages and then equipped with tools and resources to hold small groups of educational sessions within their communities.
Most importantly, awareness sessions included significant health and nutrition messages to improve the level of health education within the targeted communities. For instance, hand-washing messages, sanitation, healthy environment, Infant & Young Child Feeding (IYCF), pregnant feeding, Ante Natal Care (ANC), Cholera prevention, Diphtheria prevention, safe deliveries and vaccination.
RDP’s community health volunteers also encouraged the people in their communities to adopt health care seeking habits, which are especially important in a country where people often look to traditional healers when they are ill.
