Community health worker (CHW) programmes have been implemented in South African townships to combat tuberculosis (TB), a significant public health issue. A longitudinal study was conducted with qualitative interviews and surveys among community members and healthcare providers to assess programme impact. CHWs reported a significant increase (p<0.05) in the number of completed health check-ups per household from baseline to follow-up, indicating enhanced engagement and service uptake. The findings suggest that CHW programmes can effectively enhance TB prevention efforts when tailored to local contexts and augmented with community support mechanisms. Further research should explore scalable interventions for broader implementation of CHWs in South African townships. Community Health Workers, Tuberculosis Prevention, Community Engagement, Longitudinal Study
Khumalo et al. (Mon,) studied this question.