Village Health Workers’ Roles in Primary Health Care in Beitbridge District, Zimbabwe: A Quantitative Exploration of the Challenges and Strategies for Improvement

Village health workers play a crucial role in primary healthcare. Numerous challenges impact their effectiveness and efficiency in service delivery. The study aimed to determine the extent of the Village Health Workers’ roles, challenges, and strategies to improve service delivery in the Beitbridge district, Zimbabwe.

A cross-sectional survey was conducted to collect data from 129 rural and urban Village Health Workers on their socio-demographic characteristics, the extent of their roles, challenges, and strategies for improving service delivery. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse data.

The weighted average for the roles was 3.32; health education was the most frequently conducted activity, with a mean rank of 4.03. Other activities carried out were patient referrals, disease surveillance, and child growth monitoring, with mean ranks of 3.98, 3.57, and 3.50, respectively. With a weighted mean of 3.67 on the challenges, Village Health Workers often receive inadequate allowances and medical equipment (mean scores of 4.29 and 421, respectively). They frequently cannot access remote areas and have limited knowledge on managing some common ailments (mean scores of 3.88 and 3.71, respectively). No significant differences were found in the challenges faced by urban and rural Village Health Workers (p-values > 0.05). However, the latter frequently encountered difficulties accessing remote areas (U = 154.5; p-value = 0.000*). Mobile health technology, integration into the healthcare system, and adequate resource provision (ranked 4.51, 4.45, and 4.31; weighted mean 4.27) were suggested for improving service delivery.

Quantitative contextual insights on Village Health Workers’ roles and challenges are used to inform local policy programming.

The extent of Village Health Workers' roles, challenges, and strategies for improving service delivery was provided. This could provide valuable insights for policymakers, program managers, and stakeholders seeking to improve service delivery.