RURAL HEALTH AIDES

OVER A TWO-YEAR PERIOD, 412 RHA"S FOR PREVIOUSLY UNSERVED COMMUNITIES WILL BE SELECTED BY THE COMMUNITIES AND THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH (MOH) TO RECEIVE 10-WEEK TRAINING COURSE IN HEALTH CARE/FIRST AID, HEALTH EDUCATION/PROMOTION TECHNIQUES, AND ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTING/DATA COLLECTION. IN ADDITION, PRESENT MALARIA EVALUATORS WILL BE TRAINED AS SUPERVISORS, AND A REFRESHER COURSE GIVEN EACH YEAR FOR ALL RHA"S TRAINED IN PREVIOUS YEARS. USAID GRANT WILL SUPPORT TRAINING COSTS AND TECHNICAL SERVICES OF A PARAMEDICAL TRAINER AND EVALUATOR TO REVIEW PERFORMANCE OF RHA"S AND RECOMMEND CHANGES IN CURRICULUM. ONCE TRAINED AND DEPLOYED, EACH RHA WILL MAKE APPROXIMATELY 100 FAMILY VISITS PER MONTH. IN ADDITION TO RECOGNIZING AND REFERRING HIGH-RISK CASES, RHA"S WILL TREAT MILD CASES OF ENTERIC DISEASE, EYE INFECTIONS, AND MINOR INJURIES. THEY WILL ALSO PROMOTE PRE- AND POST-NATAL CARE, REFER WOMEN TO MIDWIVES, DISTRIBUTE CONTRACEPTIVES, AND PROMOTE IMPROVED HYGIENE, NUTRITION, AND SANITATION. COMMUNITY EDUCATION IN THESE AREAS WILL BE AN EXPLICIT DUTY OF THE RHA"S; AND COMMUNITY SUPPORT, ESPECIALLY FOR SUCH PROGRAMS AS LATRINE CONSTRUCTION, WILL BE DEVELOPED. IN SUPPORT OF THESE ACTIVITIES, AID GRANT WILL FINANCE PURCHASE OF BASIC EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES, INCLUDING UNIFORMS, MEDICAL KITS, AND BASIC PHARMACEUTICALS. GRANT ALSO COVERS PRINTING COSTS OF COMMUNITY EDUCATION MATERIALS. IN ADDITION, AID WILL PROVIDE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO MOH IN ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT, TO EASE TRANSITION TO AN OUTREACH-ORIENTED PROGRAM; WILL ALSO PROVIDE TEMPORARY SALARY SUPPORT TO NEWLY TRAINED RHA"S. TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE WILL ALSO BE PROVIDED MOH TO IMPROVE REFERRAL PROCEDURES, FACILITATE LOGISTIC SUPPORT, AND IMPROVE EVALUATION CAPABILITY. RHA PROGRAM WILL BENEFIT SOME 41,200 FAMILIES IN RURAL EL SALVADOR AND PROVIDE INFORMATION AND PREVENTIVE/CURATIVE SERVICES TO SOME 300,000 PEOPLE.