AMREF pioneered the use of distance education to provide continuing education to health workers in Eastern Africa.
What is Distance Education (DE)?
The term Distance Education refers to various forms of study where the learner is not in direct physical contact with his /her teachers. It is a proven method of teaching adults while they continue with their day to-day activities.
Why Study through Distance Education?
- It enables you to study while you continue working and attending to your family and social commitments;
- It gives you the flexibility to study at your own time, pace and place;
- Access to high quality and well prepared course materials;
- Access to experienced and highly qualified tutors and tutorial support;
- It is able to reach learners who are geographically isolated or who work in remote areas with no opportunities for training.
Who is eligible for a correspondence course?
The courses are open to all health workers who have completed their basic training
How does it work?
Upon enrolment in a course, the learner receives the first three lessons of the course. Each lesson is made up of a study guide and assignment. The learner is required to go through the study guide and answer all the questions in the assignment. When the assignments are all done, they are mailed back to AMREF where experienced tutors correct and return them with comments. The assignments are not only used as a teaching tool but are specially designed to ensure the learner can apply theory to practice. This continues till the completion of the whole course whereby a certificate is awarded.
Courses
AMREF is currently running the following distance education courses:
Child Health:
This is a self contained 20 unit course aims to provide health workers with the competencies they need to provide promotive, preventive and curative health services to children. Its content includes: How to take a sick child’s history, perform physical examination, all the necessary precautions that should be observed and the concept of IMCI to ensure proper management of a sick child. Child growth and development; Health Education; Promotion and counselling; Nutrition; Immunisation; Malaria; Diarrhoea; Acute respiratory infections; Ear, Nose, and throat (ENT); Anaemia; Internal Helminths; diseases; Dental and Eye conditions, Mental Health problems; Common injuries and accidents; Disabilities and Rehabilitation; and other conditions such as UTI, meningitis and typhoid.
Communicable Diseases
This is a 16 unit course which deals with the diagnosis, management, prevention and control of common communicable on tropical diseases. Epidemiology, Infection prevention and control; Travel Medicine; Immunisation; Contact Diseases, STDs, HIV/AIDS, Vector Borne Diseases; Malaria, Emerging and Re-emerging Diseases; Diseases of Faeco-oral Contamination, Helminthiasis, Acute Respiratory Infections; Tuberculosis and Leprosy; and Diseases of Contact with Animals.
Integrated HIV/AIDS Prevention, Care and Treatment:
The objective of this course is to develop knowledge, skills and attitudes of health care service providers requisite to the provision of comprehensive care to people living with HIV/AIDS and their families. The course has 13 units and covers: History And Epidemiology; Clinical And Laboratory Diagnosis; Counselling And Psychosocial Support; HIV Associated Conditions; Antiretroviral Therapy in adults and adolescents; HIV In Children; Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV; Nutrition; Prevention Of HIV; Setting Up Care And Support Programs. Home and Community Based Care of PLWHA, Palliative and Terminal care of PLWHA, Commodity Management for HIV/AIDS
Medicine (Non Communicable Diseases in Adults)
This is a 16 unit course which covers non- communicable Diseases in adults. The course content includes: Diseases of the cardiovascular system; Diseases of the lungs; Diseases of the urinary system; Diseases of the joints & connective tissues; Diseases of the nervous system; Diseases of the blood & reticuloendothelial system; Diseases of the nose, throat &larynx; Diseases of the endocrine glands; Diseases of nutrition; Poisoning; Common skin diseases in the tropics; Heat illness, hypothermia and allergic conditions.
Malaria:
This is a 12 unit course which addresses the management, prevention and control of malaria. Course content: About Malaria; Clinical Assessment of Malaria; Severe and complicated Malaria; Treatment of Malaria; Treatment defaults in Malaria; Referral in Severe and Complicated Malaria; Malaria in Pregnancy; Prevention and Control of Malaria; Community Based Management of fever and Malaria in children; HIV/AIDS and Malaria; Counselling and Health Education on Malaria; Malaria Surveillance.
Nutrition:
This aim of this course is to provide health workers with knowledge, skills and attitudes on how to promote good nutrition especially breastfeeding in the community; manage and prevent malnutrition in the community. It has 11 units. Course content: Food Nutrients; Maternal nutrition during pregnancy and lactation; the relationship between nutrition, infection and disease; Protein-Energy-Malnutrition; Breastfeeding Part I; Breastfeeding Part II; Complimentary feeding; Growth Monitoring Promotion; Nutrition counselling; Community Nutrition Diagnosis.
Drug Management and Rational Use:
The aim of this course is to provide health care workers with the necessary competencies in drug management and rational use. Course content: Policies and Drug control; Selection of Medicines; Procurement and Medicine Quality Assurance; Distribution of Medicine; Rational Drug Use; Organisation and Management of Drug Supply.
Community Health:
This course aims at developing competencies in health promotion, prevention and rehabilitation of individuals, families and the community, using the available resources. It has 12 core units and 4 elective the core units include: introduction to community health; Demography and Epidemiology; Primary Health Care; Organisation & administration of health services; Sociology and Anthropology; Behaviour change and communication; Environmental health; Communicable diseases; Community diagnosis and assessment; Special Health Issues; Home Based Care; Management. The Electives include: Nutrition, Immunisation; Maternal Child Health and Family Planning; and Mental Health.
Environmental Health:
This is an 8 unit course based on the Community Health Manual Published by AMREF. It starts by giving an overview of Environmental Health and then it goes on to: Environmental Health surveys; Personal Hygiene; Effects of Housing on Health; Waste Disposal; Food Hygiene; Water and Health; Health and Vector and Health of the Community.
Family Planning:
This is a 13 unit course covering: Introduction to Population and Family Planning ; Anatomy and Physiology of both Female & Male reproductive system; Contraceptive methods including Natural Family Planning methods; Management of integrated MCH/FP; community mobilisation for MCH/FP; Counselling of FP; FP Client Management; STD and HIV/AIDS in relation to FP; monitoring and Evaluation of FP services. This course teaches how to insert a coil, for example and you can be given a practical demonstration if you request.
Obstetrics and Gynaecology:
This is a 10 unit course which looks at the female Reproductive system and specifically discusses issues related to pregnancy and delivery and associated medical problems. Course content: Anatomy and physiology of the female reproductive system; Introduction to Obstetrics; Bleeding and Medical conditions in pregnancy; Normal Labour and puerperium; Abnormal pregnancy and presentation; Abnormal Labour; Operative Obstetrics and abnormal pueperium; Diseases of the female Genital track and Family Planning.
Cost:
| Kenyan Citizens | Non Kenyans |
| Kshs 10,000 | USD 300 |
Download the Distance Education Application Form
| For more information, contact: AMREF Directorate of Capacity Building |
