Community Partnerships

The partnership concept, which the University promotes, aims at collaboration between communities, service providers, privates sectors and the training institutions, and is based on strengths and mutual benefits, not on needs.  The partnership covers comprehensively all areas of health and development in order to break the vicious circle of poverty and ill-health. 
So far, the partnership relations between GLUK and communities or between GLUK and service providers have worked well.  GLUK has managed to establish sites in six Districts in Nyanza and two in Western Provinces around the lake Victoria region. 

Development of Models

GLUK has developed the concept of Essential Elements of Dignified Livelihood (EEDL), whereby broad attention is given to health, education, agribusiness, environment, nutrition and security.  It is consistently applied in all GLUK programs.

The programs undertaken within the partnership site include:

• District Health Systems improvement Program (DHSIP)
• Community Based Child Care Support Program (CBCCs)  Resource centre only
• Economic empowerment Program
• Focused Ante-natal Care program
• School Health Program focusing on adolescent reproductive health 
• Community College.

The University also provide capacity building for Community Health Workers, some of whom are Traditional Birth Attendants.  We motivate them to refer patients to health facilities

These are implemented using models that have been developed and tested by TICH namely:

• Partnership Model
• Community Based and facility Based Information system.
• Evidence based dialogue

The University is involved in developing and implementing an intervention package that would strengthen the performance of the District Health System (DHS).