Grant #92
Health Navigators
May 28, 2014
A much needed link between patients and treatment.
Western Kenya’s Mfangano Island is home to both a large HIV population, and little healthcare. The Organic Health Response (OHR) decided life on the island would be more awesome if people had access to better treatment, and we couldn’t agree more!
OHR are the pilots behind the Health Navigator Program, an exciting initiative to improve the island community.
The program helps meet the critical need for reaching timely and effective healthcare for over 20,000 residents, with an emphasis on assisting expecting mothers and the seriously injured.
This summer, OHR will recruit and train 10 local healthcare workers as the region’s first Health Navigators, intersecting patients at the critical crossroads of their illnesses to be one part emergency first responder, one part community organizer, and one part patient advocate. Acting as a ship and bridge between the island and mainland, and between patient and provider, Navigators will assist all parties in making the safest decision, while providing experienced emotional support to distressed families.
OHR’s model is remarkable, and well underway to change lives on Mfangano Island. With a little more support to cover training workshops they can turn the race to greater health into a marathon, and AWB is more than ecstatic to help make that happen.
Learn more about the future of Kenyan healthcare here. Or, follow OHR on Facebook and see the team sail across the awesome seas in the name of good health for more families.
