A mobile health technology platform for quality assurance and quality improvement of malaria diagnosis by community health workers.

Background: Community health workers (CHWs) play an important role in improving access to services in areas with limited health infrastructure or workforce. Supervision of CHWs by qualified health professionals is the main link between this lay workforce and the formal health system. The quality of services provided by lay health workers is dependent on adequate supportive supervision.

Feasibility of an innovative electronic mobile system to assist health workers to collect accurate, complete and timely data in a malaria control programme in a remote setting in Kenya.

Background: The cornerstone of decision making aimed at improving health services is accurate and timely health information. The Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation in Kenya decided to pilot feasibility of Fionet, an innovation that integrates diagnostics, data capture and cloud services, in its malaria control programme to demonstrate usability and feasibility by primary level workers in a remote setting in Kenya.

Methods: Eleven sites comprising one sub-district hospital, ten health centres and dispensaries were selected in three districts of Kisumu County to participate.

Effect of Educational Outreach Timing and Duration on Facility Performance for Infectious Disease Care in Uganda: A Trial with Pre-Post and Cluster Randomized Controlled Components.

Background: Classroom-based learning is often insufficient to ensure high quality care and application of health care guidelines. Educational outreach is garnering attention as a supplemental method to enhance health care worker capacity, yet there is little information about the timing and duration required to improve facility performance. We sought to evaluate the effects of an infectious disease training program followed by either immediate or delayed on-site support (OSS), an educational outreach approach, on nine facility performance indicators for emergency triage, assessment, and treatment; malaria; and pneumonia.

Improving facility performance in infectious disease care in Uganda: a mixed design study with pre/post and cluster randomized trial components.

Background: The effects of two interventions, Integrated Management of Infectious Disease (IMID) training program and On-Site Support (OSS), were tested on 23 facility performance indicators for emergency triage assessment and treatment (ETAT), malaria, pneumonia, tuberculosis, and HIV.

Methods: The trial was implemented in 36 primary care facilities in Uganda. From April 2010, two mid-level practitioners per facility participated in IMID training.