COMMUNITY HEALTH

EDUCATION &
FACILITATION.
By Philip Mutua
Objectives
• To Understand on community health education and do practical
in it.
• To study and understand on methods, skills in facilitation,
advantages and disadvantages of facilitation and qualities of a
good facilitator.
• To understand participatory methods, tools in participatory.
• To learn and understand on lesson planning and participate in
lesson plan making.
Definition of Terms.
Community Health Education
Process that enables people to gain control over the social, political, and personal
conditions that affect their health.
Health education is any combination of learning experiences designed to help
individuals and communities improve their health, by increasing their knowledge
or influencing their attitudes.
Facilitation is the art of moving a group of people through meetings, planning
sessions, or training, and successfully achieving a specific goal.

A facilitator is a person who helps a group of people to work together better,

understand their common objectives, and plan how to achieve these objectives,
during meetings or discussions.

A lesson plan is a teacher's daily guide for what students need to learn, how it
will be taught, and how learning will be measured
Rationale:
• Provides a strong foundation for their promotion.
• Participatory methods are often most valuable at the early stages of a project when the needs are still being
formulated.
• The outputs of these participatory methods may suggest the need for additional and more detailed data on
a particular topic.
• At that point, other more formal methods could be considered.
• Health education is one strategy for implementing health promotion and disease
prevention programs.
• Health education provides learning experiences on health topics.
• Health education presents information to target populations on particular health topics,
including the health benefits/threats they face, and provides tools to build capacity and
support behavior change in an appropriate setting.

Examples of health education methods

•Lectures
•Demonstrations
•Role plays
•Group discussions
•Interviews
•Dramas
•Courses
•Seminars
•Webinars
•Workshops
•Classes
Lecture
A lecture is usually a spoken, simple, quick and traditional way of presenting your
subject matter.
Strengths: there is efficient introduction of factual material in a direct and logical
manner.
Weakness: ineffective where the audience is passive and learning is difficult to
understand.
Experts are not always good teachers and communication in a lecture may be one-way
with no feedback from the audience.
Group discussion
Involves the free flow of communication between a facilitator and two or more
participants.
This type of teaching method is characterized by participants having an equal
chance to talk freely and exchange ideas with each other.
In most group discussions the subject of the discussion can be taken up and shared
equally by all the members of the group.
In the best group discussions, collective thinking processes can be used to solve
problems.
Demonstration
In your work as a health educator you will often find yourself giving a demonstration.
This form of health education is based on learning through observation.
There is a difference between knowing how to do something and actually being able to do it.
The aim of a demonstration is to help learners become able to do the skills themselves, not just know
how to do them.

Role play
In role play, some of the participants take the roles of other people and act accordingly.
Role play is usually a spontaneous or unrehearsed acting out of real-life situations where others watch and learn
by seeing and discussing how people might behave in certain situations.
Learning takes place through active experience; it is not passive. It uses situations that the members of the group
are likely to find themselves in during their lives.
You use role playing because it shows real situations
Drama
Drama is a very valuable method that you can use to discuss subjects
where personal and social relationships are involved.
Basic ideas, feelings, beliefs and values about health can be
communicated to people of different ages, education and experience.
It is a suitable teaching method for people who cannot read, because they
often experience things visually.
However the preparation and practice for a drama may cost time and
money.
QUALITIES OF AGOOD FACILITATOR.

•Engaging Conversations
•Surfacing Conflict
•Team-Building
•Data & Trend Analysis
•Consensus-Building
•Idea Generation
•Planning
•Organizational or Team Assessment
•Decision-Making
•Problem-Solving
Participatory methods (PMs) include a range of activities that
enable ordinary people to play an active and influential part in
decisions which affect their lives.
This means that people are not just listened to, but also heard;
and that their voices shape outcomes.

Participatory tools;
• Group dynamics
• Visualization techniques
• Interviewing and oral communication techniques.
• Field observations
Principles of adult learning
 Principles of Adult learning
• Autonomous and self-directed: They need to be free to direct themselves.
Facilitators must actively involve adult participants in the learning process and
serve as facilitators for them. Facilitators must show participants how the
class will help them reach their goals.
• Have accumulated a foundation of life experiences and knowledge that
may include work-related activities, family responsibilities, and previous
education. They need to connect learning to this knowledge/experience
base. To help them do so, they should draw out participants' experience and
knowledge which is relevant to the topic.
• Adults are goal-oriented. Upon enrolling in a course, they usually know what
goal they want to attain. They, therefore, appreciate an educational program
that is organized and has clearly defined elements. Instructors must show
participants how this class will help them attain their goals.
Cont’d
• Relevancy-oriented. They must see a reason for learning something.
Learning has to be applicable to their work or other responsibilities to
be of value to them. This need can be fulfilled by letting participants
choose projects that reflect their own interests.
• Practical, focusing on the aspects of a lesson most useful to them in
their work. They may not be interested in knowledge for its own sake.
Instructors must tell participants explicitly how the lesson will be
useful to them on the job.
• Adults are always right in their reasoning?
Sources of motivation for adult learning
• Social relationships: to make new friends, to meet a need for associations
and friendships.
• External expectations: to comply with instructions from someone else; to
fulfill the expectations or recommendations of someone with formal
authority.
• Social welfare: to improve ability to serve mankind, prepare for service to
the community, and improve ability to participate in community work.
• Personal advancement: to achieve higher status in a job, secure
professional advancement, and stay abreast of competitors.
• Escape/Stimulation: to relieve boredom, provide a break in the routine of
home or work, and provide a contrast to other exacting details of life.
• Cognitive interest: to learn for the sake of learning, seek knowledge for its
own sake, and to satisfy an inquiring mind
 Approach to adult learning
I. TAPPING INTO PRIOR EXPERIENCE:
Need for Knowledge: Adults need to know “why” they should learn.
Motivation: Adults are driven by internal motives. They will learn if they want to
learn.
Willingness: readiness to learn comes from perceiving the relevance of the
knowledge. They want to know how learning will help them better their lives, and
they learn best when they know that the knowledge has immediate value for
them.
Foundation or Experience: They analyze, rationalize, synthesize, and develop
new ideas or tweak old ones through the filter of their experiences.
Self-Direction: Adults are self-directed individuals who want to take charge of the
learning journey. They are independent beings who want to feel in control.
Orientation to Learning: Adults learn best when they “do.” They find relevance in
task-oriented learning, which they can align with their workplace realities.
 Approach to adult learning (Cont’d)
II. Transformational Learning:
Identification of a Dilemma or a Crisis: The realization that we had
all along been holding on to wrong beliefs or that we don’t know
what we should know is often a trigger to dig in and unearth
information or review our mindsets and thought patterns.

Establishment of Personal Relevance: This is the context or the

answer to the eternal “what’s-in-it-for-me” question that inspires
people and drives learning.

Critical Thinking: Your learners are sensible, rational people with

minds of their own.
 Approach to adult learning (Cont’d)
III. Experiential Learning:
“Tell me, and I will forget. Show me, and I may remember. Involve me, and I will understand.“ ~
Confucius.
-- As human beings, we are shaped by our experiences.—
4 stages of experiential learning:
 Concrete Experience (CE): Adults learn best when the learning experience goes beyond the
chalk-and-talk routine.
Reflective Observation (RO): Adults need to engage with and reflect on their experiences to
glean insights and acquire knowledge.
Abstract Conceptualization (AC): The success of experiential learning lies in the learner
being able to decode abstract concepts from their reflections, generalize these ideas, and
realize the relevance to their reality. Designs assessments to encourage learners to exercise
their “critical thinking” abilities, so they can formulate concepts and procedures.
Active Experimentation (AE): Role-playing activities, internships, and other hands-on tasks
let learners apply the learning and thus truly “learn by doing.” Active experimentation leads
to concrete experiences, and the cycle of experiential learning resumes.
Community Dialogue
 Community Dialogue
Def I: An interactive participatory communication process of sharing
information between people or groups of people aimed at reaching a common
understanding and workable solution
Def II: A forum that draws participants from different sections of a community
and creates the opportunity for exchanging information and perspectives,
clarifying viewpoints, and developing solutions to issues of interest to the
community.
• It is a mutual continuous exchange of views, ideas and opinions about an
issue or a concern
• Organizing and facilitating Community Dialogue is done by the CHC, while the
mobilization is done by the CHVs.
 Characteristics of community dialogue
• It involves interactive communication between two or more
parties
• Aims at reaching a common understanding on issues for the
purpose of taking action.
• Dialogue meetings are held quarterly (4 times in a year) and
members
• Participants include CHVs, CHCs, sub county Health
Management teams, partners and members of the public.
 Importance of Community Dialogue
• Seek to satisfy everyone’s needs
• Win-win solutions
• Find others’ strengths
• Look upon others as a friend
• Open up the communication
• Ask questions and show that you want to learn
• Create energy by listening actively, asking, inspiring in a positive
way, and getting involved
• Seek more solutions.
 Steps in Carrying out Community Dialogue
Setting the stage: Making an entrance into the community leadership
and community structures (CHC, HFMC, County administration).
Organized group identification and mapping: Knowing which organized
groups exist in the community, where they are and what they do.
Making visible the unexpressed needs: Helping the communities to
identify the most important needs and how to address them.
Making organized group action plans: Based on the needs and the
current status, the community will make plans on how to achieve what
they want to be in the future.
Ensuring sustained dialogue and results for development: Linking
communities and services, supporting the organized groups to carry on
by themselves.
 Facilitating a Community Dialogue
Uses the LePSA Approach:
• Le – Learner centered
• P – Problem posing
• S – Self-discovery
• A – Action oriented
LePSA involves the use of Starter followed by SHOWeD questions
 What to Consider when preparing a Starter
a. Theme: Deal with a theme for which the community has strong
feelings
b. Familiarity with real life: Show familiar scenes in everyday life
c. Motivation: It should stimulate interest and move emotions
d. Theme selection: Deal with one theme
e. Simplicity: It should be simple, clear, and visible
f. Specificity: Avoid distracting details
g. Coding: A code should raise questions but not provide solutions
h. One problem for every code: It should portray one problem.
 SHOWeD QUESTIONS
• What did you SEE or hear? (describe the situation depicted by the
starter)

• What was HAPPENING? (interpret the situation and identify the

problem)

• Does it happen in OUR community/experience? (relevance)

• WHY does it happen? (identify and analyze the root cause

The chalk board can help generate issues for dialogue in the
community.
 Health Action
• The community should make an Health Action plan during the
dialogue day, and the action plan is implemented on the Action day.

• This means Action days are held as per the Action plans. The
frequencies of the Action Days is determined by the priority needs
of the community.
• Health action: health promotion processes that are implemented
by community members or individuals to achieve their collectively
and collaboratively determined actions and outcomes to sustain or
improve the health and well-being of their community.
Mapping with Community Dialogue Channels
Community Dialogue Mapping: Facilitation technique used to visualize
critical thinking as a group.
Dialogue maps help teams and organizations collaborate and deliberate
on complicated issues more effectively by facilitating a discussion that
breaks down each issue and idea.
Importance:
• It is a popular problem-solving tool for community health workers.
• It helps the community document the group’s discussion over time.
• Helps the group identify gaps in their thinking
• Allows anyone to participate—no special training required
• Builds a shared commitment to the solution
What you need to conduct mapping session
• The community
• A diverse team of stakeholders
• A designated facilitator
• A shared “dialogue” map display (either a
physical whiteboard or a digital document)
How to conduct a dialogue mapping session
i. Gather together your team of problem-solvers, which usually includes a
diverse group of individuals, often from different teams or departments
(e.g., community, the facility, various departments, etc.). Gather a group
of diverse contributors, you can ensure the dialogue (and resulting
knowledge) is comprehensive and reflective of the varied perspectives
within your organization.
ii. Get a Facilitator: The facilitator (or mapper) guides the group discussion
and is responsible for interpreting each individual's ideas and translating
them clearly to the shared diagram. The facilitator must be an active
listener and good communicator.
During the mapping process, the facilitator listens to each team member’s
thoughts, writes the ideas on the diagram and then validates the information,
confirming that the ideas were correctly understood and clearly expressed.
 Learner centre approach (LCA) in community
dialogue
LCA: An approach which gives learners, and demands from them.

• It is a relatively high level of active control over the content and process of
learning.

• What is learnt, and how, are therefore shaped by learners’ needs, capacities and
interests.
• Frees learners from teacher authoritarianism and from strict curricula that do not
reflect their personal needs.
LCA is best applied in community dialogue as it triggers the community to come up
with their problems and probable solutions under the supervision of an facilitator.
 Facilitate A Community Health Action Plan (Project Steps)
• After conducting a community dialogue/CHNA the next step is to write a
community health action plan (CHAP) to address the local health priorities that
were identified from the dialogue
• CHAP is written document that lists plans for achieving health improvements in the
community.
• CHAP becomes a detailed blueprint that maps a clear course of action to support
community change.
The plan describes:
What your community wants to accomplish
What needs to be done, by whom, how it will be done, and by when
What resources (i.e. money, people) are needed to be successful
Who will be most affected
 Steps in Developing a CHAP
• Review and analyze results of community assessment/Dialogue.
• Choose a group of people to work together on developing the CHAP.
• Identify outcomes that would address the issues.
• Identify challenges, obstacles, or potential barriers to successfully implementing
interventions.
• Identify necessary resources and where you will obtain them.
• Choose individuals and community partners who will support, identify with, and
implement goals and objectives.
• Consider a timeline for conducting activities
• Include monitoring and evaluation activities
• Review the completed action plan.
An Example of A CHAP
 Additional considerations for completing a CHAP
• Partnerships among people. In order to accomplish the goals and objectives in the
plan, many people will have to be engaged in doing the work.
• Budget. Financial resources are usually necessary to carry out a community a
health action plan.
• Close alignment with the community’s mission and vision. During the writing of
the CHAP, the writers work from the vision and the mission to identify either
priority or strategic goals.
• Find out what has already and is currently being done toward the initiative. Build
off of what has already been started, no need to reinvent the wheel!
• Include justification of the goal and/or need. What is the findIing or data that
justifies the need for this intervention?
• Measure of success. What are the desired outcomes or milestones for the
intervention?