Elephants disrupt health outreach in Kunene

Six months between outreach visits leave children unattended Elephants sometimes force health outreach teams to cancel planned visits to Braunfels in the Kunene region, leaving families in the remote community waiting for essential services. Residents say they waited six months for an outreach programme to return to their community, which raises concerns about access to healthcare for families living far from health facilities. Community health worker Berlinda Haraes, who serves the area, says elephants pose a safety risk to outreach teams travelling across the farms. “The work is complicated by the presence of elephants in the area, which sometimes pose safety risks and force outreach teams to cancel planned visits,” she said. Haraes travels between scattered households to check on children, pregnant women and other residents who need assistance.

She can walk up to 10 kilometres a day to reach families. She says her duties include checking children’s immunisation status, screening for malnutrition, identifying pregnant women and following up with people living with HIV to encourage them to continue taking their medication. She also assists parents whose children do not have birth certificates and helps eligible residents who are not receiving social grants to access the support. Braunfels has a population of 356 people, including 58 children. Community health workers cover 14 farms and approximately 350 households. The challenges faced by the workers came into focus during a visit to Braunfels by United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) regional director for eastern and southern Africa Etleva Kadilli, where an outreach programme was conducted. During the visit, community health workers also raised concerns about worn-out uniforms, particularly their boots, which they…