There is need for upgraded training and development of public health technicians to heighten their capacity to provide quality services to the Kenyans.
This was revealed in a Training Needs Assessment (TNA) report that was piloted by a team of experts from the Ministry of Health, Human Resources Development Unit (HRD) and key stakeholders.
The launch of the Report is a significant milestone in the efforts to streamline and strengthen the public health system.
Some of the objectives of the TNA are to find out in-service training needs and the number of healthcare workers that require training from both levels of government to effectively deliver Kenya Essential Package for Health (KEPH), to identify gaps in pre-service training and call for competency–based programs and specialized sub-areas for professionals to enhance their capacity to tackle the public health challenges.
The conference has brought together health practitioners from around the world to discuss the emerging health issues and sustainable public health approaches to health and the environment.
Mombasa Governor, Sharif Nassir launched the report on the second day of the ongoing first International Public Health Conference held at Pride Inn Paradise Shanzu.
“Improving and protecting community health and well-being is at the center of building a productive nation and we are going to work with stakeholders to keep increasing the number of health workers for the benefit of our people,” Nassir said.
The Chairman of the Conference, Mohammed Karama said that the training of public health officers is now looking into depth of fields of specialization including; research aspects, water sanitation and hygiene in schools, occupational health and safety, enforcement of the law, disease surveillance and prevention.
“We are looking at the possibility of specialization in those fields so that public health officers can independently prosecute health matters,” Karama said
Karama said that they will collaborate with training institutions to provide support so that the report can be well implemented.
The Council of Public Health Officers has the mandate to oversee training institutions to make sure what has been proposed is being implemented at that level.
The Chairlady of the Public Health Officers and Technicians Council of Kenya, Mboni Mwalenga, applauded the initiative to increase the number of Community Health Volunteers (CHVs).
Mwalenga said that when well trained, the CHVs will help deliver first hand health services whenever necessary.
She concluded that the ministry is working to curb the deficit of the number of workers who have retired both from National and County level that have not been replaced as one of the resolutions of the conference.
By Fatuma Said
