The Youth Employment Agency in Collaboration with the One Million Community Health workers (1mCHW) campaign of millennium promise, is supporting the ministry of health and Ghana health service to go digital with a community based health data system through the introduction of the eHealth Technical Assistants(ETA) module which was launched on 28th November,2016.
The ETA initiative is under the community Health Assistants Module of YEA.This is being rolled out to fast track Ghana’s strides towards achieving universal health coverage and meeting the increasing data demands under the sustainable Development Goals(SDGs).
The module will also contribute to YEA’s quest to create job opportunities for the youth in Ghana and contribute to SDG Eight(8) of promoting full and productive employment and decent work for all.
The ETAs will help strengthen community health data handling processes to facilitate prompt decision making for improved health. The ETA’s will be facilitated with the donation of:
* five hundred (500) state-of-the-art ICT Tablets
* five hundred (500) uniforms
* one thousand (1000) knapsacks
By 1mCHW to YEA, to support community Health Workers (CHWs) with health related data collection, transmission, storage,analysis, use,retrieval and achieving. This will contribute to spurring a health data revolution in Ghana.
Through the joint YEA, GHS and 1mCHW campaign, one Thousand (1,000) ETA’s have been recruited and trained.
The ETA’s are young Ghanaians between the ages of 18 and 35 years with minimum of senior High School certificate and were recruited through a competitive process that involved online applications, shortlisting,interviews and selection.
The ETA’s were trained was conducted using the National E – Health Technical Assistants Training Manual which was jointly developed by the above mentioned organizations.
The training provided an:
* overview of the community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) concept,
* the roles and responsibilities of the ETAs and
* the Mobile handheld devices policy guidelines of the Ghana Health service as well as
* data management responsibility at the community, health facility and district level.
The training also included
* basics in ICT education and ICT security,
* the district Health information management system (DHIMS),
* an introduction to the eTracker system,
* telemedicine
* troubleshooting.
The ETAs will help Ghana meet the increasing demand on health data with the introduction of community Health Workers in the pursuit of universal Health coverage in Ghana.
Following this official launch, the ETA’s shall be deployed to the district Health Administrations across the country to work under immediate supervision of the District Health Information Officers,and overall direction of the district Directors of Health Services.
Source: Dickson Boadi// www.dailyviewgh.com / Ghana
Writer’s email dailyviewgh@gmail.com
