Browsing by Author "Kerry Scott"

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    A tale of two exemplars: the maternal and newborn mortality transitions of two state clusters in India
    (BMJ Global Health, 2024) Usha Ram; Banadakoppa Manjappa Ramesh; Andrea Katryn Blanchard; Kerry Scott; Prakash Kumar; Ritu Agrawal; Reynold Washington; Himanshu Bhushan
    This paper examines progress in two state clusters: higher mortality states (HMS) with lower per capita income and lower mortality states (LMS) with higher per capita income.
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    '[We] learned how to speak with love': a qualitative exploration of accredited social health activist (ASHA) community health worker experiences of the Mobile Academy refresher training in Rajasthan, India
    (BMJ Open, 2022) Kerry Scott; Osama Ummer; Sara Chamberlain; Manjula Sharma; Dipanwita Gharai; Bibha Mishra; Namrata Choudhury; Amnesty Elizabeth LeFevre
    Introduction Mobile Academy is a mobile-based training course for India's accredited social health activist (ASHA) community health workers (CHW). The course, which ASHAs access by dialling a number from their phones, totals 4 hours of audio content. It consists of 11 chapters, each with their own quiz, and provides a cumulative pass or fail score at the end. This qualitative study of Mobile Academy explores how the programme was accessed and experienced by CHWs, and how they perceive it to have influenced their work. Methods We conducted in-depth interviews (n=25) and focus group discussions (n=5) with ASHAs and other health system actors. Open-ended questions explored ASHA perspectives on Mobile Academy, the course's perceived influence on ASHAs and preferences for future training programmes. After applying a priori codes to the transcripts, we identified emergent themes and grouped them according to our CHW mLearning framework. Results ASHAs reported enjoying Mobile Academy, specifically praising its friendly tone and the ability to repeat content. They, and higher level health systems actors, conceived it to primarily be a test not a training. ASHAs reported that they found the quizzes easy but generally did not consider the course overly simplistic. ASHAs considered Mobile Academy's content to be a useful knowledge refresher but said its primary benefit was in modelling a positive communications approach, which inspired them to adopt a kinder, more 'loving' communication style when speaking to beneficiaries. ASHAs and health system actors wanted follow-on mLearning courses that would continue to compliment but not replace face-to-face training. Conclusion This mLearning programme for CHWs in India was well received by ASHAs across a wide range of education levels and experience. Dial-in audio training has the potential to reinforce topical knowledge and showcase positive ways to communicate.