On August 11th and 12th, 2021, TOT (Training of Trainers) was conducted for a total of approx. 150 Department of Health staff and community health assistants in the target areas of this project – Suba South and Ndiwa.
In Suba South and Ndiwa, many people are suffering from jiggers. Most of these homes are inaccessible, far from the main roads.
In Kenya, there are a number of areas where health services cannot be provided by the central government staff alone due to road conditions and other reasons. Community health assistants and community health volunteers are the local people who, on behalf of the government, shoulder the role of delivering health services to each household in such places.
During the trainings, our participants studied the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of jiggers with practical demonstrations. They will now take up the responsibility of teaching and conducting training for about 800 community health volunteers (CHVs), which commence in late August.
This training method is called cascade style. It is unique in that the Japanese, who are foreigners, do not instruct the local people to acquire “external knowledge”. Instead, the locals spread the knowledge among themselves and teach each other.
It is believed to be an effective way to change the mindsets of individuals at the grassroots level.
【Nagasaki University is implementing a sustainable jiggers control project with funding from JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency)】