The Ghana Red Cross Society has trained 47 volunteers in Fakwasi and Ajalaja Beposo in the Atebubu-Amantin and Pru districts of the Brong Ahafo region under the Community Based Health and First Aid project CBHFA.
The CBHFA is a community development approach funded by the Finish Red Cross where community members are used to identify community health priorities and solutions found to them using local resources.
It has the objective of improving water and sanitation, maternal and child health, disaster preparedness and other challenges in relation to community health and thereby contributing to meeting the millennium development goals 4, 5, 6 and 7.
According to Miss. Petrina Dery, project officer for the CBHFA the training sessions apart from the new insights that it carries will refresh the minds of volunteers and address some challenges they face thereby enhancing their capacity to deliver.
Messrs Solomon Gayoni, Brong Ahafo regional manager of the Ghana Red Cross and Francis Obeng National First Aid Coordinator took participants through basic first aid, disaster prevention and management, hygiene and sanitation, prevention and management of epidemics, psychological first aid and basic life support.
They were also tutored in harm reduction in the case of excessive alcohol and drug abuse, family planning, diarrhea and dehydration, acute respiratory infection, malaria prevention and control, cholera prevention as well as data collection.
Mr. Gayoni hoped that with the knowledge imparted, the volunteers will be able to lead cleaner, healthier and more robust communities prepared against disasters and ready to provide basic first aid in a wide range of areas for the benefit of the people.
Some participants expressed their gratitude to the Red Cross for the new lessons learnt especially in psychological first aid which they hoped will help address problems in their communities.
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