SayPro HWSETA 64697 – FETC Further Education and Training Certificate in Community Health Work

Description

Purpose:

This Qualification is for any individual who is, or wishes to be, involved in Ancillary Health Care services. A learner who has achieved this qualification will integrate a range of awareness and competences to practice the roles of health promoter, health provider and health networker within a community development context.

Learners working towards this Qualification will find that the acquisition of competence in the Unit Standards, which make up the Qualification, will add value to their work performance. This Qualification is intended to enhance the provision of entry-level service within the field of health care within all sectors.

Learners who complete this qualification will have better self and social awareness and will possess a range of thinking and problem solving skills. In addition, they will possess the competence required to perform community health functions in a complex developing world context. They will have the skills required for employment by a range of government and social sector employers, will be in possession of a further education and training certificate and will be eligible for certain credit recognition in various higher education health qualifications.

Qualified learners in this field will provide a service that will assist communities to better manage their own health and wellness. They will have the skills to work as team members and as providers of support services within a multidisciplinary health care team.

In addition, recipients will be able perform some of the following according to their choice of electives:

• Facilitate and administrate community health activities/centre via supervision of a team of health care workers.
• Provide community health care.
• Provide care for persons with intellectual and physical disabilities.
• Assist in planning advocacy campaigns to support primary health care initiatives.
• Assist in facilitating and implementing primary health care projects within the community.
• Engage in inclusive communication with the Deaf in South Africa.
• Practitioners will generally carry out their roles within the context of:
> The client’s home.
> A community care centre.
> The broader community.

Rationale:

The South African Government is committed to combining the national human resource development strategy with the rapid upgrading of service delivery to all of the nation’s communities.

An integral part of this strategy is initiatives to strengthen communities` abilities to empower themselves to participate in the political, economic, social and development spheres of South African life. Two key components in this empowerment are communities` abilities to integrate with and access state services, and their ability to further the health and wellness of community members.

There is no doubt from the international experience of Community Health Workers (CHW) that they play a role in improving basic health status of communities. In South Africa, the important supportive role of CHWs in the provision of health care services has been extensively documented. This contribution is further exemplified in those parts of the country where there is a shortage of professional health workers to provide the necessary health care services based on identified needs.

The Department of Health is leading the implementation of a multi-professional team-based approach to health care delivery, where each member of the team has a defined role to ensure that there is no duplication and overlapping of functions.

Since Ancillary Health Care workers are found throughout the country – from established urban areas to scattered farms and deep rural areas – the type of learner to enter for this qualification is equally varied. The first level qualification in the bouquet is at NQF Level 1, ABET Level 4 and the last qualification is the FETC: Community Health Work at NQF Level 4. As a result, learners will vary in age, in background and in level of formal schooling. The common denominator is the desire to help their fellow beings.