CBCHS Capacitated to Respond to Infectious Disease Outbreak, Pandemic
Some key staff and leaders of the Cameroon Baptist Convention Health Services (CBCHS) have been strengthened with skills to respond to outbreak of infectious diseases or a pandemic by filling critical gaps in outbreak response capacity and capability. The one-week training dubbed, “Operational Readiness Training for Major Disease Outbreak Response,” began on Monday 24, 2022, at the CBC Health Services Resource Centre of Excellence, Mvan in Yaounde.
The training is organized by the UK-MED, Part of a READY CONSORTIUM (an organization funded by the United States Agency for International Development- USAID to support the global preparedness for response to a pandemic and infectious disease outbreak).
Over the course of 6 months, a group of staff from the CBC Health Services will boost their operational capacity to respond to current and future major disease outbreaks in humanitarian settings through a blended and co-designed learning approach.
The training, according to organizers, has as objectives to engage with organizations working on the ground to be very active, have capabilities and to better prepare to enable them to response rapidly to infectious disease outbreak.
Speaking during an interview, the Chief Executive Officer of UK-MED, David Wightwick said, over 146 organizations applied for the training but just three including the CBC Health Services were chosen for a pilot. “We selected these three organizations because they had a high level of capacity, expertize and quite a lot of knowledge about infectious disease outbreak and the operational capability”.
He emphasized that “When we looked through the various organizations which applied for the training, CBC Health Services came out as an organization that had an exceptionally high level of capacity, a high level of healthcare delivery at facility, primary and central level and a regular connection with the Ministry of Health and WHO”.
On his part, the infection prevention nurse of the CBC Health Services, Mr. Nkwan Jacob stated that “The training will enable participants to identify areas where they need to build their capacities in emergency response”.
According to the Public Relations Officer of the CBC Health Services, Mr. Wango Barnabas “I want to be able to understand how to get ready for situations of outbreak or emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic and the Anglophone crisis currently plaguing the country right now. As a Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the CBCHS, the training will enable me to be able to ensure that the system is prepared for such outbreak and to scale up to other institutions”.
The one-week training comprised of a digital outbreak readiness and response simulation, a recap of risk assessment priorities, a scenario-bases response development and planning, outbreak leadership, and working groups on identified actions among others.