Mothers seeking reproductive health services at a health centre.
Community based initiatives can provide solutions to the problems bedeviling the health sector through chamas and community-based cooperatives, according to a new study.
It indicates that 89.8 per cent of women would subscribe to a healthcare insurance scheme if established by their own cooperative societies while 94.1 per cent would be willing to recommend a healthcare insurance scheme to others.
This is according to a research project
dubbed “Catalyzing Women’s Involvement in Post-Covid -19 Recovery through
Agricultural Cooperatives in Kenya (Winrack Project).
According to Ampath, Chamas for Change Women Rise group, 73 per cent of women who participate in chamas are more likely to receive at least four Antenatal care services, 68 per cent are more likely to deliver in a health facility, 98 per cent more likely to receive Community Health Volunteer services within 48 hours of delivery and 74 per cent more likely to exclusively breastfeed for six months.
Anjella Juma, a researcher at Ampath said: “Covid 19 exposed and worsened the existing structural challenges in global health systems especially maternal newborn and child health (MNCH) services in the Sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore, Chamas can create a support network that allows people to share resources and information within their specific groups.”
She added: “Strengthening integration with
formal health systems and addressing structural barriers are critical to
improving outcomes. The National and County Governments should take up
community level interventions into the formal health systems to ensure Maternal
and Newborn Child Health (MNCH) services are not majorly affected during times
of crises. They should develop robust contingency plans within health systems
to ensure uninterrupted maternal health services during emergencies.”
