Sexual|Reproductive Health
Our Best Shot: Frontline Health Workers and COVID-19 Vaccines
Fully realizing the social and economic benefits of halting COVID-19 requires investing in a fast and fair global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines. CARE estimates that for every $1 a country or donor government invests in vaccine doses, they need to invest $5.00 in delivering the vaccine.
Investments in frontline health workers are a critical component in this comprehensive vaccination cost. Of the $5.00 in delivery costs, $2.50 has to go to funding, training, equipping, and supporting health workers—especially women—who administer vaccines, run education campaigns, connect communities to health services, and build the trust required for patients to get vaccines. For these investments to work, they must pay, protect and respect women frontline health workers and their rights—a cost that is largely absent from recent WHO estimates on vaccine rollout costs. No current global conversations or guidance on vaccine costs includes the full cost of community health workers or long-term personnel costs.
Investing in a fast and fair global vaccine distribution will save twice as many lives as maximizing vaccine doses for the wealthiest countries in the world. Even better, investing in vaccine equality will speed up economic recoveries in every country in the world. For every $1 invested in vaccines in less wealthy countries, wealthy countries will see $4.80 of economic benefit because economies can fully re-open sooner. Failing to make this investment could cost wealthy economies $4.5 trillion in economic losses.
Current global debates are focused so narrowly on equitable access to for vaccine doses that they largely overlook the importance of delivering vaccines—and the key role women frontline health workers play in vaccine delivery. Of 58 global policy statements on vaccines, only 10 refer to the costs of delivery at all—and these are primarily technical advisories from the World Health Organization. No government donors are discussing the importance of vaccine delivery systems that are necessary to ending COVID-19. Only one statement—from Norway—refers to the importance of women health workers as part of the solution to ending COVID-19.
As new and dangerous strains of COVID-19 emerge in countries that are struggling to access the vaccine and control the pandemic, every day we wait for fair global vaccination allows for more contagious strains that spread around the world. The more chances the virus has to mutate in non-vaccinated populations, the higher the risk for everyone. Comprehensive global vaccine delivery plans that make sure the vaccine gets to people who need it—and that those people are ready to get the vaccine when it arrives—are the only way to end this threat. No one is safe until everyone is safe.
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Investments in frontline health workers are a critical component in this comprehensive vaccination cost. Of the $5.00 in delivery costs, $2.50 has to go to funding, training, equipping, and supporting health workers—especially women—who administer vaccines, run education campaigns, connect communities to health services, and build the trust required for patients to get vaccines. For these investments to work, they must pay, protect and respect women frontline health workers and their rights—a cost that is largely absent from recent WHO estimates on vaccine rollout costs. No current global conversations or guidance on vaccine costs includes the full cost of community health workers or long-term personnel costs.
Investing in a fast and fair global vaccine distribution will save twice as many lives as maximizing vaccine doses for the wealthiest countries in the world. Even better, investing in vaccine equality will speed up economic recoveries in every country in the world. For every $1 invested in vaccines in less wealthy countries, wealthy countries will see $4.80 of economic benefit because economies can fully re-open sooner. Failing to make this investment could cost wealthy economies $4.5 trillion in economic losses.
Current global debates are focused so narrowly on equitable access to for vaccine doses that they largely overlook the importance of delivering vaccines—and the key role women frontline health workers play in vaccine delivery. Of 58 global policy statements on vaccines, only 10 refer to the costs of delivery at all—and these are primarily technical advisories from the World Health Organization. No government donors are discussing the importance of vaccine delivery systems that are necessary to ending COVID-19. Only one statement—from Norway—refers to the importance of women health workers as part of the solution to ending COVID-19.
As new and dangerous strains of COVID-19 emerge in countries that are struggling to access the vaccine and control the pandemic, every day we wait for fair global vaccination allows for more contagious strains that spread around the world. The more chances the virus has to mutate in non-vaccinated populations, the higher the risk for everyone. Comprehensive global vaccine delivery plans that make sure the vaccine gets to people who need it—and that those people are ready to get the vaccine when it arrives—are the only way to end this threat. No one is safe until everyone is safe.
Read More...
Support for Service Delivery Integration- Services (SSDI-Services) Endline
SSDI-Services was the flagship project for USAID/Malawi’s health office. The project was implemented from November 8, 2011 to March 7, 2017 under a cooperative agreement, valued at USD 89 million. Active project implementation occurred over a 4.5-year period from April 2012 to December 2016, with the preceding and following months focused on startup and closeout activities respectively.
SSDI-Services provided financial and technical assistance to the Malawian Ministry of Health (MoH) to deliver, refine, and scale up high-impact interventions contained in the Essential Health Package (EHP). The EHP includes globally proven and cost-effective interventions to address key causes of illness and death in Malawi. SSDI-Services implemented interventions under the following program areas: maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH); family planning (FP); malaria; nutrition; HIV/AIDS; and sanitation and hygiene.
SSDI-Services was implemented by a consortium comprising Jhpiego as lead, CARE, Plan International, and Save the Children. The project focused on increasing access to, and strengthening the delivery of, EHP services both at the health facility and in the community. It leveraged the work of both SSDI-Communication and SSDI-Systems to improve health-seeking behavior and the quality of health services by addressing the informational needs of both service providers and their clients. It also addressed systems issues that may hinder the provision of high-quality Read More...
SSDI-Services provided financial and technical assistance to the Malawian Ministry of Health (MoH) to deliver, refine, and scale up high-impact interventions contained in the Essential Health Package (EHP). The EHP includes globally proven and cost-effective interventions to address key causes of illness and death in Malawi. SSDI-Services implemented interventions under the following program areas: maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH); family planning (FP); malaria; nutrition; HIV/AIDS; and sanitation and hygiene.
SSDI-Services was implemented by a consortium comprising Jhpiego as lead, CARE, Plan International, and Save the Children. The project focused on increasing access to, and strengthening the delivery of, EHP services both at the health facility and in the community. It leveraged the work of both SSDI-Communication and SSDI-Systems to improve health-seeking behavior and the quality of health services by addressing the informational needs of both service providers and their clients. It also addressed systems issues that may hinder the provision of high-quality Read More...
ENDLINE EVALUATION COVER PAGE Adolescent Empowerment Project (AEP) IN KAJIADO & MUKURU
CARE implemented the Adolescent Empowerment Project (AEP) in Kenya, funded through the Patsy Collins Trust Fund Initiative from 2015 to 2020. The project aimed to empower adolescent girls and boys from chronically insecure households to fully exploit their potential, take advantage of opportunities, and fulfil their aspirations. Over a 5-year implementation period, the project targeted adolescents (aged 10-19) in urban Mukuru (within Nairobi county) and rural Kajiado county with a suite of activities and services delivered through partners Hope Worldwide Kenya (HWWK) and Neighbors Initiative Alliance (NIA). Inputs were designed to expand life choices and empower participants to become engaged citizens and include activities on leadership skills development, adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ARSH), economic empowerment, ICT skills, and quality education.
This report is 70 pages long. Read More...
This report is 70 pages long. Read More...
Improving Sexual and Reproductive Health through Reducing Early Marriage in Remote Ethnic Communities in Sekong Province, Lao PDR
Lao PDR has the highest rates of early marriage in the region, even though the law sets the age of marriage at 18. Young brides are more vulnerable to sexual abuse from their partners and to unintended pregnancy. Lao PDR has the highest adolescent pregnancy rate in the region due to early marriage, limited knowledge of sexual & reproductive health, and limited access to appropriate services. The overall goal of the project is improved sexual reproductive and maternal health (SRMH) in remote ethnic communities in Sekong Province. The action contributes to reduced child marriage, as well as providing SRMH knowledge and developing youth friendly health infrastructure. The action engages the whole community to reflect on harmful traditions and their negative impact on the development of girls, and to create an enabling environment for girls. CARE also provides organizational and technical capacity development to local governments and partners to enable them to deliver key messages on the link between child marriage and pregnancy risk to the targeted ethnic minorities.
This report is 17 pages long. Read More...
This report is 17 pages long. Read More...
Baseline Study on “Improving lives of Rohingya refugees and host community members in Bangladesh through sexual and reproductive healthcare integrated with gender-based violence prevention and response” Project
In response to the health and protection needs of the Rohingya refugees and the host communities in Cox ́s Bazar, CARE is implementing the project “Improving lives of Rohingya refugees and host community members in Bangladesh through sexual and reproductive healthcare integrated with gender-based violence prevention and response” with funding support by German Federal Foreign Office. This is a two year project targeting Rohingya refuges of camp 11, 12, 15 and 16 and vulnerable host communities of Jaliapalong union for GBV and SRH services.
To achieve improved sexual and reproductive health, GBV survivor support and protection from GBV of Rohingya Refugees in Cox ́s Bazar in Bangladesh, this project works across three outcomes. Firstly general and sexual and reproductive (SRH) health services will be provided through decetralised health centers which will rove around the target areas to provide services to people at their doorsteps. Improved Menstrual Hygiene management (MHM) is the second outcome of this project. There is an absence of space for washing and drying menstrual hyiene materials, leading women and girls to risk their health by drying their materials indoors. Through this project, therefore, two MHM spaces will be constructed next to CARE’s existing women and girls’ safe spaces (WGSS) in camps 12 and 16. The construction will be accompanied with training to ensure that the spaces are used appropriate. The third project outcome focuses on prevention of and response to gender-based violence. Services include psychosocial counselling, referral of GBV survivors, life-skills training, information and awareness-raising and recreational activities. These activities are complemented by community outreach activities, conducted through Rohingya volunteers, to ensure that the communities know about and can access the WGSS, and challenging harmful social norms associated with GBV. Community outreach will take place in camps 12 and 16 amongst refugee populations.
This report is 22 pages long. Read More...
To achieve improved sexual and reproductive health, GBV survivor support and protection from GBV of Rohingya Refugees in Cox ́s Bazar in Bangladesh, this project works across three outcomes. Firstly general and sexual and reproductive (SRH) health services will be provided through decetralised health centers which will rove around the target areas to provide services to people at their doorsteps. Improved Menstrual Hygiene management (MHM) is the second outcome of this project. There is an absence of space for washing and drying menstrual hyiene materials, leading women and girls to risk their health by drying their materials indoors. Through this project, therefore, two MHM spaces will be constructed next to CARE’s existing women and girls’ safe spaces (WGSS) in camps 12 and 16. The construction will be accompanied with training to ensure that the spaces are used appropriate. The third project outcome focuses on prevention of and response to gender-based violence. Services include psychosocial counselling, referral of GBV survivors, life-skills training, information and awareness-raising and recreational activities. These activities are complemented by community outreach activities, conducted through Rohingya volunteers, to ensure that the communities know about and can access the WGSS, and challenging harmful social norms associated with GBV. Community outreach will take place in camps 12 and 16 amongst refugee populations.
This report is 22 pages long. Read More...
Programme Sante USAID/Kenya Ciwara Rappor D’Analyse de L’Enquete D’Evaluation Finale
The program is part of Strategic Objective 6 (SO 6) which aims to increase the use of high impact services and improve health behaviors / practices. These services relate to the survival of the child (vaccination, malaria, diarrheal diseases, acute respiratory infections, nutrition and vitamin A). The final evaluation takes place two years after the mid-term evaluation and four years after the baseline evaluation. The report is 55 pages long. Read More...
Formative Research for Social & Behavior Change (SBC) in nutrition, reproductive health and WASH
Between July and August 2016 formative research was carried out by HKI with the overall scope to gather evidence about current practices in nutrition, reproductive health and WASH and identify appropriate strategies for achieving project social and behaviour change outcomes. The formative research explored behaviors, focusing on improving the health and nutritional status of pregnant and lactating women as well as children, and improving access to and utilization of WASH infrastructure. The research findings will be used to generate a robust Social and Behavior Change Communication Strategy (SBCC) focused on several key practices. Topics explored by the research were reproductive health, children and maternal nutrition, WASH and media exposure. The report is 80 pages long. Read More...
Projet Ulu Gnala Se Toliya “Bonne Nutrition des Enfants Maintenant” Midterm Report
Le projet Bonne nutrition des enfants maintenant, qui vise à réduire les causes sociales de la malnutrition, est cofinancé par la Commission de l’Union Européenne et CARE. Il est mis en œuvre depuis mars 2008 dans 97 villages de quatre (4) communes rurales du cercle de Bandiagara sur le plateau dogon, au Mali. Il s’agit des communes de Bara sara, Djamnati, Dourou et Kendié. The report is 44 pages long. Read More...
PROMOTION DE LA SANTE DE LA MERE ET DE L’ENFANT (PSME) Final
La vaccination et les services de planification familiale sont deux composantes importantesdes soins de santé primaire. La plupart des femmes en période post-partum prolongée souhaitent retarder ou éviter d’autres grossesses mais beaucoup d’entre elles n’utilisent pas de méthode moderne de contraception. Une analyse des données provenant de plusieurs pays a montré que les besoins de contraception non satisfaits chez cette population étaient très importants, allant de 45 % à plus de 80 % des femmes en post-partum (Borda and Winfrey, 2008). La planification familiale permet aux couples d’avoir le nombre d’enfants qu’ils désirent et de choisir le moment et l’espacement des grossesses, ce qui permet d’améliorer la santé de la mère et de l’enfant [48 pages]. Read More...
SOMALI RELIEF AND RECOVERY PROGRAM (SSRP) Final Evaluation
The Somalia Relief and Recovery Project-SRRP main goal was to address the most urgent and basic needs of drought affected communities in Bari, Galgaduud, Lower Juba, Mudug, Sanaag, Hiraan, and Sool regions that have been severely affected by the recurrent drought crisis. In particular, the project aimed to improve access to safe water and hygiene to drought-affected communities, provide temporary employment opportunities, and delivered treatment services for acutely malnourished children and pregnant and lactating women, provide basic health services, and protection services. The project also aimed at improving coordination through Somalia NGO consortium to concert and coordinate efforts to adequately address the recurrent humanitarian challenges in Somalia. [66 pages]. Read More...