Partnership and Networks

Research Question

 

 

Description

Identifying the local organisational asset base: LISA (Local institutional support assessment)

In COPC, the local institutional support assessment (LISA) project was initiated around a collection of existing maps drawn by CHWs and their use of the LISA tool to identify and determine possible organisational support for COPC in their practice communities.

The mapping of organisations in communities is an important part of initial operationalisation as well as the on-going functioning of COPC.  Organisational mapping is used to identify stakeholders and partners.

Teams are expected to use the ‘local institutional support assessment’ (LISA) tool to help determine the institutional community asset base.

Support, networking and partnerships

Creating and maintaining relationships are central to the establishment and ongoing practice of community-based service delivery. When CHWs go to people’s homes they often have to manage negative attitudes and behaviour as well as general service expectations.  Teams try to reduce resistance by working with local authorities and ward committees as well as the clinic committees, where they are represented usually by the WBOT coordinator or facility managers. They also overcome barriers through perseverance and persuasion as well as by delivering services that people need.

Outside of primary healthcare clinics, the WBOTs strongest working relationships are with social development and related, ‘third sector’ non-governmental (NGO) and faith based (FBO) welfare partners.  Social workers are described as key integrators by WBOTs. Through NGO and FBO partnerships, CHWs help families and individuals get assistance with grants, blankets and food parcels. They also make and receive referrals, and ensure clients get home based and rehabilitative care.  Partner organisations in some places also allow them to use their facilities to run support groups and training.

Building local health organisational capacity:

Maps are elemental to the design, planning and implementation of community-oriented primary care (COPC). Community health workers also create hand-drawn sketch maps to help them identify their areas of practice. These are used on their own or when available to complement cadastral maps. GIS and mapping components are built into Aitahealth™, a customised application device and web information and communication technology (ICT) platform, developed by UPDFM and Mezzanineware (Vodacom). The platform generates maps from data collected by CHWs on mobile handsets during household registration, screening and service delivery. These maps support service prioritisation, capacity development and performance management by visualising micro-level household and individual health status.

Conceptually, maps are what Kitchin and Dodge term sets of spatial practices that people use to solve ‘relational problems’. Although maps are often thought of as static, ontologically secure representations of reality, they are in fact momentary transitory objects produced and recreated by people through use.[1] Corner also argues that maps trigger agency because they enable people to generate ideas and make connections between layers of information that are visualised on a map.[2]

 

[1] Corner J. The agency of mapping: Speculation, critique and invention. In: Cosgrove D, editor. Mappings, London: Reaktion Books; 1999, p. 213–252.

[2] Casey MA, Krueger RA. Focus groups: A practical guide for applied research. London, Thousand Oaks, and New Delhi: Sage; 2014

 

The people involved

Click on the name to view the biosketch.

 

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