Caribbean Women’s Health Association & Healthkeepers Model

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Role of CWHA
Guiding Principles
The Health Keepers Model
Conclusion
References

Introduction

The Caribbean Women’s Health Association, Inc (CWHA) has grown into a non-profit organization, whose role is to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals and the community at large. This helps to strengthen and empower communities. The CWHA was initially a community-based health organization, offering its services and support at the grassroots level. The CWHA is involved in eradicating poverty by creating safety nets and establishing leadership initiatives. The CWHA has served as an advocacy and service provider in communities for over twenty years. Participation by community members has been the key principle governing its successful operations. It is accredited by the United Nations Economic and Social Council because of its efficient and excellent mode of service delivery.

Various women professionals involving doctors, nurses, and social workers, together formed the CWHA. CWHA does not concentrate on a particular culture but its services are enjoyed by various cultural communities. However, these services are culture-sensitive to avoid conflicting with the people’s cultures. The CWHA was founded after the realization that a large number of immigrants, and especially from the Caribbean, faced many and serious barriers when accessing health care services. This negatively affected their health outcome (Gilchrist, 2007)).

Role of CWHA

CWHA provides immigration, health and social services to a heterogeneous population. Its operations take place within five community service centers situated in Brooklyn and Queens. It also accommodates new immigrants to enable them to adjust to their new environment. It does not target a particular group but rather, it targets every group based on its specific needs. It engages itself in research studies to find out the reasons behind health disparities. It also offers services related to domestic violence, maternal and child health, teenage issues and health insurance. All this is done to ensure that all communities in the Caribbean have equal opportunities for health care. This move by CWHA bridges the gap that prevails between minority and non-minority groups in the Caribbean. It builds bridges across communities with diverse cultural affiliations, and subsequently opens doors to citizenship.

Guiding Principles

According to Bayne-Smith et al (2005), four principles are attributed to the successful operations of CWHA. The existence and leverage of these principles have led to participation, sustainability, and development, of the health keepers model within the ethnic communities in the Caribbean and especially, within the immigrant communities. In addition, the health status of the populations has significantly improved. The four principles are as follows:

Multi-factorial/Multipronged approach
Networking and collaboration with other partners
Participatory approach
Extensive and broad health care services that target the individual as a whole

The Health Keepers Model

It is precisely for its remarkable role in health delivery that CWHA, is referred to as a health keepers model. The table shown below will demonstrate how the CWHA has gradually achieved this.

Environmental Cause	CWHA Decision or Action Taken	Outcome/Effect
Poor leadership and governance; cultural conflicts and shocks; need to gain desired impact based on formulated goals; lack of experience amongst the local immigrant and ethnic populations.	Changes in policy, leadership, operations guidelines and outreach.	Changes in collaboration with immigrants’ cultures of origin to avoid conflicting ideas; intensified networking to enhance and promote advocacy, fundraising and program support; linking with CBOs, FBOs, schools, government agencies, hospitals, churches, media, and clinics; changes in modes of recruitment and training of staff; making use of potential local skills and expertise from college interns and local volunteers; empowerment of the community; community mapping.
Need to empower the community; Need for an efficient and effective health care delivery system and extensive and intensive skills.	Coming up with a detailed training program for community health workers through resource mobilization, networking and collaboration with institutions at the grassroots level.	Targeting the correct population based on specific needs and thereby carrying out an extensive creation of awareness and identify the available local resources for use by the association.
Cultural barrier; need for positive change within the local immigrant and ethnic populations, through improved health care.	Making use of key informants to understand the practices and ways of living of the populations.	Collaboration and participation of relevant health parties to enhance sustainability and efficiency of the health provision program, and bridge the gap marked by culture differentiation.
Need to achieve cost-effectiveness of the health care delivery system.	Identifying and making use of locally available resources.	Cost-effectiveness of the program and empowerment of the locals.
Need to create a bridge between the existing health care delivery system and different cultures as marked by the different immigrant and ethnic populations; lack of knowledge.	Understanding the cultures and beliefs of the ethnic populations; advocating for the utilization of health care.	Integrating ideas on reproductive health, prenatal care, parenting and fatherhood into the community’s way of life; understanding immediate and special needs of the newborns to support and maintain optimal growth and development; a healthy balance between cultural issues and health care.
Disease outbreaks; poor dietary practices and nutritional deficiencies; poor access to health care services.	Advocacy, creating awareness, health education, resource mobilization	Increased access and use of health care services by the immigrant and ethnic populations; immunization; adolescents understand issues related to sexuality better; better nutritional practices.
Culturally unacceptable input resources, duplication of resources.	Collaboration and linking up with local institutions.	Programme development and assistance; effective and efficient administration of the program.
High disease relapse rates; drug resistance.	Monitoring and evaluation.	Referrals and follow-ups to maximize and foster health provision and positive health outcomes respectively.
Increased incidence of chronic diseases; poor living conditions; poor infant and young child feeding practices.	Family empowered through education and creation of awareness.	Maintenance of good hygiene and sanitation; good nutrition, and maternal and child care; wise balance between health and cultural issues to ensure good health; reduced domestic violence; improved health care for the disabled in the family.
High employment rates among the local immigrant and ethnic populations; Low household income; Promotion of the health care system.	Making use of local skills and expertise.	Career development; gaining entitlements and benefits hence, improved general living standards; empowerment and sustainability of health care within the immigrant and ethnic populations.

Conclusion

CWHA is a very important organization within society. Bridging the gaps that exist amongst various cultures helps in understanding and appreciating other cultures while integrating health care delivery. The health keepers model illustrated above shows how the CWHA works at its best to achieve improved capacity, management, efficiency and effectiveness of grassroots and faith-based organizations, ethical behavior, organizational development, governance, and accountability.

References

Bayne-Smith, M. et al. (2005). Community-Based Health Organizations: Advocating for Improved Health. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Gilchrist, C. (2007). Yvonne Graham: on her work, her writing, and coming back home. Web.

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Caribbean Women’s Health Association & Healthkeepers Model

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