Determinants of the low participation of community relays in primary health care activities: the case of the Kabondo Health Zone, Tshopo Province, Democratic Republic of Congo

Abstract

After noting the low involvement of community relays in the Kabondo health zone in primary health care activities, we thought it would be
useful to conduct a study on the determinants of the low involvement of community relays in primary health care activities: t he case of the
Kabondo health zone, Tshopo province. This is a descriptive cross-sectional study based on a quantitative paradigm. The sample size consisted
of 73 community health workers, representing 10% of the total population. Data collection was conducted through interviews supported by a
pre-established questionnaire. The collected data were encoded and analyzed using IBM SPSS software version 22. The results of this study
revealed that the determinants of low participation of community health workers in primary healthcare activities include the lack of
reimbursement for medical expenses during surveys (78.1%), the workload of respondents outside the Health Zone’s activities (56.8%), the
absence of benefits after completing health-related activities (63%), and the lack of training and refresher courses provided to CHWs by the
Health Zone authorities (71.3%). These findings highlight the importance of an integrated approach to enhance the participation of community
health workers. Thus, tailored training programs, better resource allocation, and increased recognition of their role are essential to improving
their engagement. The low participation of community health workers in primary healthcare activities is due to the non-reimbursement of
medical expenses, the workload outside the activities of the health zone, the lack of certain benefits after completing health activities, and the
lack of training and refresher courses for community health workers by the health zone authorities.