Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa has advised 155 newly trained Community Health Extension Workers (CHEWs) in Mitooma District against treating patients or setting up informal clinics, telling them to concentrate on health education, disease prevention and linking communities to health facilities.
Tayebwa told the community health workers to instead become the government’s eyes and ears within communities by identifying health risks, educating households and referring people to appropriate health facilities.
“You’re not a doctor; don’t start acting like doctors, don’t set up clinics. Don’t attempt to treat anyone. That is not your job,” he said.
He was speaking on Monday during the passing-out ceremony for the community health extension workers at the Mitooma District headquarters, where he joined Ministry of Health officials and district leaders to mark the completion of their training.
The workers are expected to take health promotion closer to households, in areas where residents may face difficulties accessing health facilities. Their responsibilities include community sensitisation, disease surveillance, encouraging immunisation and antenatal care, identifying health risks and referring patients for professional treatment.
Tayebwa said Mitooma’s geographical setting and disease burden make community sensitisation important. The district has communities bordering forests and a national park, while malaria remains a significant health concern.
He urged the community health extension workers to identify communities with particular disease burdens and tailor their health education campaigns to the needs of those areas.
He also asked local leaders to give the workers space at community gatherings, including burial ceremonies, to sensitise people instead of allowing such platforms to be dominated by politicians.
Tayebwa further told the community health workers to educate communities about lifestyle-related diseases, including the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption, and to encourage women to attend routine antenatal care.
He cautioned the workers to protect bicycles and other equipment provided to them by the government, saying the items were intended to facilitate their work and should not be treated as personal property.
“Guard the properties that you have been given; they are not gifts. They are work equipment. For you women, if your husband confiscates the bicycle, report immediately.”
Director General of Health Services Dr. Charles Olaro said the deployment of the workers is part of a broader Ministry of Health effort to shift Uganda’s health system towards prevention rather than waiting for people to become sick before seeking treatment.
Olaro said a large proportion of Uganda’s disease burden could be prevented through better health information, healthier lifestyles and early action at community level.
The success of the community health extension workers programme, he said, will be measured by the health problems prevented in communities rather than by the number of patients referred to health facilities.
Olaro said community health workers should play an important role in promoting immunisation, antenatal care, family planning, sanitation and the prevention of non-communicable diseases.
Mitooma District Acting District Health Officer Julius Taremwa said the new workers will help address a longstanding gap between households and health facilities.
Although the district recently recruited 101 health workers, including a surgeon, gynaecologist and medical officers, its staffing level remains at about 22 percent.
He also said the district faces gaps in health facilities in some communities, while Mitooma General Hospital is undergoing further development.
“We still have communities that are not being reached. For example, Katenga Sub-county as a whole has no health facility, and Kiyanga Sub-county also faces gaps in access to health services,” he said.
