In Ethiopia, ACCESS is improving the quality of essential maternal and newborn health care (EMNC) services by building the capacity of training institutions for health workers. With ACCESS assistance, Health Officers (HOs) and Health Extension Workers (HEWs) are being trained in EMNC, including infection prevention practices in service delivery and linkages with HIV prevention, care and support services at the community level.
In partnership with the Carter Center and other key stakeholders, ACCESS is strengthening selected hospitals to serve as training sites for providers from the other HO training hospitals. In these training institutions—as well as in the HO hospitals selected for intervention—ACCESS is updating faculty and service providers in EMNC clinical and teaching skills, ensuring the availability of EMNC equipment and supplies, strengthening the clinical training sites in infection prevention and EMNC service provision, and supporting updated faculty and service providers to train additional staff at these sites.
In collaboration with local and international partners and stakeholders, ACCESS is establishing a health center-based apprenticeship program for HEWs to improve their skills in safe and clean delivery, postpartum care, and referral of complications. Through the Ethiopian Nurse-Midwives Association (ENMA), ACCESS is strengthening selected health centers in the Oromia Region to become training centers for HEW refresher training in maternal and newborn health services. These training centers will support the training of HEWs in their catchment areas as well as neighboring woredas.
ACCESS and the ENMA will strengthen the skills of health center-based midwives and maternal and child health nurses to train HEWs in EMNC, prevention and treatment of mother-to-child transmission of HIV and other HIV-related counseling skills, as well as in appropriate infection prevention (IP) practices. In addition, ACCESS works to strengthen referral linkages for HIV/AIDS prevention, care and treatment, and referrals for maternal and newborn emergency care.
About ACCESS:
The ACCESS Program is the U.S. Agency for International Development''s global program to improve maternal and newborn health. The ACCESS Program works to expand coverage, access and use of key maternal and newborn health services across a continuum of care from the household to the hospital—with the aim of making quality health services accessible for women and newborns. Jhpiego implements the program in partnership with Save the Children, Constella Futures, the Academy for Educational Development, the American College of Nurse-Midwives and Interchurch Medical Assistance.
