The Jamii ni Afya digital platform supports community health volunteers (CHVs) and their supervisors delivering services to families through household visits from pregnancy through age 5. A mobile app for CHVs creates a visit schedule, prompts screening questions, supports decision making, and guides coaching in health and development based on the type of visit (e.g., antenatal), and stage of pregnancy/age of child.
Topics range, for example, from antenatal care, immunizations, child nutrition, and responsive caregiving. Supervisors are able to use a complementary mobile app to monitor CHV progress in conducting household visits including completion of visits and referrals made to other service providers. A supportive supervision tool for CHV supervisors also guides them to conduct routine observation of CHVs during home visits.
These mobile applications are in use across 11 districts in Zanzibar in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, and are part of the national community health strategy. The guidance and data available through the app help to reduce initial training needs and allows for ongoing updates to protocol and guidance shared by CHVs.