A community health aide training programme in a developing country

ABSTRACT

The Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of the West Indies, reports on (a) a four-month experimental training programme for community health aides drawn from a sub-urban low to middle socio-economic community, (b) a three-month training programme in rural area. The overall aim was to give the aides a basic minimum training so that they could function as auxiliaries under supervision, relieving highly trained personnel to utilise their skills and training more effectively. The aides have worked in various positions, namely in comprehensive health care programmes, in physiotherapy, as field workers in research projects, and in family planning. Evaluation of the programme indicates that these workers have performed satisfactorily and that a community health aide can be a very useful member of the health team in our developing countries. (Summary)