CBCHS Press Division Transforms into Communication Unit
Effective July 26, 2019, what hitherto, was called the Cameroon Baptist Convention Health Services (CBCHS) Press Division has been transformed to bear a new appellation, CBCHS Communication Unit. What is in a name is a common question!
The change of name was one of the key resolutions taken at a meeting at the DHS Hall in Bamenda with CBCHS Central Administration, the Press Division and the HIV Free Communication Team together with their Project Managers. The meeting appreciated the current Communication Channels within the system and their efforts to give visibility to the CBC Health Services, programs, and projects and resolved to harmonize all the efforts into the Communication Unit for better management of information and coordination.
In his opening words, Prof. Tih Pius Muffih, Director of Health Services (DHS) called for frank discussions to better the way the communication is done within the CBCHS. The Director reiterated the importance of Communication as the life wire of every Organization. In his words “Information is Strength. Organizations depend on information to succeed, and how well we do depends largely on how well we communicate”.
The Chief of Administration and Finance (CAF), Mr. Warri Denis moderated this meeting that examined how communication is done at the former Press Division, in the various programs and projects of the CBC Health Services and on the institution’s website. The role of Heads of Services, Program and Project Managers as well as the need for good pictures were also discussed.
The meeting charged the newly created Communication Unit to operationalize the outcomes of the discussion through Refresher Courses on key communication aspects to keep Program and Project Communication Officers and Field Reporters abreast with prevailing changes and expectations. Besides, the Communication Unit should propose a good structure in which information flows to the Unit to feed the Health Mirror magazine which is quarterly, the Health Services Chronicle which is monthly, and the Website which is daily or weekly. Meanwhile, the programs and projects should intensify effective communication to meet the needs of their specific targets. Above all, a monitoring system should exist to ensure that proper communication is being done within the system.
Before the meeting rose, the DHS appreciated the open discussions and admonished everyone to respect the various channels of communication. He said our visibility will increase when we improve on our reporting and publishing of information in the system.
Ms. Clementina Njang is Head of CBCHS Communication Unit. She holds a Master’s Degree in Professional Communication.