National Dissemination and
Discussion Meeting of the SHINE Project: Advancing Community Health
Workersโ Mental Wellbeing in Bangladesh
On 12 August in Dhaka, the SHINE Project (Strengthening Health Systems
by Improving Community Health Workersโ Mental Wellbeing and Empowerment,
2022โ2026) convened a national-level Dissemination and Discussion
Meeting. The project is funded by the National Institute for Health and
Care Research (NIHR) and implemented globally with LVCT Health, African
Population and Health Research Center (APHRC), and Liverpool School of
Tropical Medicine, alongside local partners BRAC and the NCDC Programme
under the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
The event was inaugurated by Chief Guest Dr. A. M. Zakir Hussain,
Chairman, Community Clinic Health Support Trust, MoHFW, with remarks
from Dr. S. M. Mustafizur Rahman, Director (Retired), HPNSP, DGHS.
Welcome addresses were delivered by Professor Malay Kanti Mridha, Deputy
Dean and Director, CNCDN, and Professor Sabina Faiz Rashid, Mushtaque
Chowdhury Chair in Health and Poverty and Director, CGSRHR, BRAC JPGSPH,
and Honorary Professor, International Public Health, Liverpool School of
Tropical Medicine, UK. The session concluded with reflections from Dr.
Syed Masud Ahmed, Director, CoE-HS&UHC, and Dr. Syed Zakir Hossain, Line
Manager, NCDC Programme, DGHS.
Key findings highlighted that Government Community Health Care Providers
(CHCPs), Health Assistants (HAs), BRACโs Shasthya Kormis (salaried
CHWs), and Shasthya Shebikas (volunteer CHWs) face multiple stressors
including heavy workloads, inadequate supervision, low pay, safety
concerns, lack of career pathways, minimal allowances, income
instability, and challenges balancing work with family responsibilities.
These factors significantly affect both their physical and mental
wellbeing.
In the next phase, SHINE will co-design and pilot tailored support
interventions with CHWs, aiming to improve mental health, job
satisfaction, and empowerment in sustainable and respectful ways.
The meeting brought together senior government officials from DGHS,
CBHC, NCDC, NIMH, academic institutions, development partners (icddr,b,
BRAC, WHO), mental health NGOs, as well as study site representatives
and frontline CHWs, whose contributions enriched the discussion.
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