Health Programme

The Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (MNCAH) programme seeks to improve the health, survival and wellbeing of women, newborns, children and adolescents through strengthened access to and utilisation of quality, equitable and integrated primary healthcare services.

The programme adopts a continuum-of-care approach spanning pregnancy, childbirth, the postnatal period, infancy, childhood and adolescence, with interventions delivered at health-facility and community levels.

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Implementation uses an integrated health-system strengthening and community-based approach, in collaboration with government health authorities, health facilities, community structures and development partners, aligned with national and sub-national health policies, guidelines and priorities.

We work to prevent vaccine-preventable and other infectious diseases by strengthening access to quality immunization and essential disease prevention services. Our interventions focus on reaching underserved and hard-to-reach communities, improving vaccination coverage, promoting early detection and strengthening community participation in disease prevention and control.

Through collaboration with health authorities, healthcare providers and community structures, we support stronger primary healthcare systems and promote sustainable approaches to disease prevention and public health protection.

We work with government health authorities, healthcare providers, community leaders, community health workers and other partners to:

• Strengthen the capacity of frontline health workers and service providers.
• Improve the quality, availability and reach of immunization services.
• Identify and reach zero-dose and under-immunized children.
• Strengthen community mobilisation, health education and risk communication.
• Promote early identification, referral and reporting of priority diseases.
• Strengthen linkages between communities, health facilities and public health systems.
• Use health data and evidence to identify service gaps and improve performance.
• Support coordinated preparedness and response to outbreaks and public health emergencies.

We support the delivery of timely, accessible and quality healthcare services during emergencies and humanitarian crises. Our interventions address immediate health needs while supporting the continuity of essential services for populations affected by conflict, displacement, disease outbreaks, natural disasters and other emergencies — working with health authorities, healthcare providers, communities and humanitarian partners to ensure affected populations can access appropriate care when and where they need it.

• Conducting rapid health assessments and identifying priority needs.
• Supporting timely delivery of essential health services.
• Strengthening frontline healthcare workers' emergency response capacity.
• Supporting continuity of essential services during crises.
• Strengthening referral and emergency care pathways.
• Supporting facility readiness with essential medicines, supplies and equipment.
• Engaging communities in identifying needs and accessing available services.
• Coordinating with government and humanitarian health structures.

We support communities and health systems to prevent, detect and respond rapidly to disease outbreaks and public health threats. Our interventions strengthen preparedness, early detection, coordination and response mechanisms to minimise transmission, protect communities and reduce illness and deaths — working with government health authorities, health facilities, communities and partners so that responses are timely, coordinated and guided by evidence.

• Supporting emergency preparedness and response planning.
• Strengthening frontline capacity for outbreak detection and response.
• Supporting early warning, notification and reporting mechanisms.
• Strengthening case identification, referral and follow-up.
• Promoting infection prevention and control measures.
• Engaging communities in outbreak prevention and response.
• Supporting coordination with government and humanitarian response structures.
• Using surveillance and response data to guide decision-making.

We support health facilities and communities to strengthen infection prevention and control practices that protect patients, healthcare workers, caregivers and communities from avoidable infections — promoting safe healthcare environments and strengthening the capacity of health workers and facilities to apply appropriate IPC standards across routine services, emergencies and disease outbreaks.

• Training, mentorship and supportive supervision of healthcare workers.
• Strengthening adherence to national IPC guidelines and standards.
• Promoting hand hygiene and standard precautions.
• Supporting appropriate environmental cleaning and disinfection.
• Strengthening healthcare waste management practices.
• Supporting availability and use of IPC supplies and equipment.
• Conducting facility-level assessments to identify and address IPC gaps.
• Integrating IPC into routine healthcare delivery and emergency response.

Effective emergency response depends on informed, engaged and trusted communities. We work with affected populations and local structures to provide timely, accurate and culturally appropriate health information before, during and after emergencies — promoting community participation, building trust, addressing misinformation, and supporting people to adopt protective behaviours and access essential health services.

• Engagement with trusted community leaders and local structures.
• Context-specific health education and risk communication.
• Community mobilisation and outreach.
• Behaviour change communication.
• Identification and response to rumours and misinformation.
• Community feedback and accountability mechanisms.
• Two-way communication between communities and health service providers.
• Coordination with government and humanitarian communication structures.

We support the use of timely, accurate and actionable health information to guide emergency preparedness, response and decision-making — strengthening surveillance, rapid health assessments, reporting and analysis to identify emerging health threats and changing needs among affected populations, working with health authorities, facilities, communities and response partners.

• Supporting rapid health assessments and situation analysis.
• Strengthening disease surveillance and early warning mechanisms.
• Building health workers' and response teams' capacity in data collection and reporting.
• Promoting data quality, completeness and timely reporting.
• Supporting analysis and visualisation of health information for decision-making.
• Strengthening information-sharing and coordination among stakeholders.
• Using routine and emergency data to monitor response performance and identify gaps.
• Promoting responsible and appropriate management of health information.

We build local capacity by training community volunteers who visit households, identify vulnerable individuals and connect families with essential healthcare services. Alongside health education campaigns, this work increases community awareness and adoption of healthy behaviours and improves early detection and referral of illness.

What this includes

• Health education and awareness campaigns.
• Household visits by community health volunteers.
• Referral to health facilities and services.
• Community surveillance.
• Behaviour change communication.

We strengthen community awareness and the early identification and reporting of suspected diseases, so that cases can be investigated, referred and responded to quickly. Trained community volunteers and health workers act as the first line of detection for epidemic-prone diseases.

What this includes

• Training community volunteers and health workers in case detection.
• Early identification and reporting of suspected diseases.
• Linking reports to timely investigation, referral and response.
• Community awareness of priority and epidemic-prone diseases.

Our outpatient services bring essential curative care closer to underserved communities, through supported health facilities and mobile medical teams that reach populations with limited access to health facilities.

What this includes

• General consultation.
• Child healthcare.
• Maternal healthcare.
• Nutrition screening and referral.
• Health education.
• Referral services.

Vector control is part of our wider work to reduce the transmission of communicable diseases, with a focus on malaria prevention. We combine community health education with early identification and referral so that illness is prevented where possible and treated promptly where it occurs.

What this includes

• Malaria prevention education in households and communities.
• Community mobilisation for prevention activities.
• Early identification and referral for diagnosis and treatment.

We work to prevent the spread of cholera and other waterborne diseases, and respond rapidly when outbreaks occur. Our response teams combine water quality monitoring and treatment with hygiene promotion and community sensitisation, coordinating with local health authorities throughout.

What this includes

• Case Area Targeted Intervention (CATI).
• Water quality surveillance.
• Chlorination and disinfection.
• Hygiene promotion.
• Community sensitisation and risk communication.
• Infection prevention.