Unicef launches campaign in honour of village heal...

Unicef launches campaign in honour of village health workers

Patricia Mashiri

The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund Zimbabwe hailed the work of the village health workers and nurses at primary health facilities in ensuring access to basic health services in the country.

In honour of them, Unicef has launched a campaign called the Champions of Health”. It will be in the form of profiles of village health workers and professional nurses, which will be featured on the Unicef Zimbabwe website and social media followed by a radio campaign.

In a statement, Unicef noted that Zimbabwe has done well in improving access to health care.

“Zimbabwe has made some notable progress in providing access to basic health services. This progress was primarily made possible by Zimbabwe’s adoption of the Primary Health Care approach supported by the contributions of the village health workers and the professional nurses in the delivery of primary healthcare services.

“They are instrumental in ensuring basic health services are available to those in need and generating demand for health services by the population, including immunisation, which - together with Vitamin A supplementation - is one of the most cost-effective childhood health interventions,” reads the statement.

The communication on health will also highlight the collaboration between the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Unicef and health partners in supporting the work of village health workers and professional nurses.

Meanwhile, the campaign will coincide with the upcoming World Water Day later this month, as well as World Health Day and the Immunisation Week in April.