Hodge Health Screening Clinics

Hodge Health Screening Clinics

Up and Running in Kisumu, Kenya

By Allison Kozicharow; Edited by Elizabeth Fine

WiRED International’s Tony and Edie Hodge Health Screening Clinics (HHSCs) launched in April and are now fully functional in Kisumu, Kenya. The eight-hour clinics will occur monthly in underserved locations around Kisumu and will be operated by WiRED’s team of trained community health workers (CHWs).

WiRED’s Program Director Lillian Dajoh reported that the rollout session occurred on August 8 within the community of Manyatta B Ward:

WiRED CHWs mobilized patients, in turns, for health vitals screenings under the supervision of clinician Albert Junior, while radiologist Steve Mwalo conducted chest x-rays. The team provided medications to the most vulnerable people who attended the session and could not afford the drugs. CHWs used WiRED-donated blood pressure machines, thermometers and oximeters. The Kenya Ministry of Health supplied malaria random test kits and free HIV test kits.

The HHSCs are an innovative addition to the regular practices of CHWs. The mobile clinics take basic health screening out of brick-and-mortar facilities into the field to reach vulnerable people in the community who have little access to health care. These clinics help identify potential health problems early on when they are most treatable. Further, the HHSCs provide basic clinical services to treat bumps, cuts and bruises. They offer health and prevention training and referral services where appropriate to connect people with medical resources that can assist them.

Ms. Dajoh said, “The clinical outreach not only helps in improving awareness of health issues among people in the Kisumu community but it also inspires skill development in our CHWs’ continuing education to enable them to better address those issues.”