Ethiopia’s Health Extension Workers Use of Work Time on Duty Time and Motion Study

Ethiopia has implemented an innovative community-based health program, called the health extension program, to enhance access to basic health promotion, disease prevention, and selected curative services by establishing health posts in every village, also called kebeles, with average of 5,000 people, staffed with two health extension workers (HEWs). This time and motion study was conducted to estimate the amount of time that HEWs spend on various work duties and to explore differences in urban compared with rural settings and among regions.

Ethiopia has implemented an innovative community-based health program, called the health extension program, to enhance access to basic health promotion, disease prevention, and selected curative services by establishing health posts in every village, also called kebeles, with average of 5,000 people, staffed with two health extension workers (HEWs).

This time and motion study was conducted to estimate the amount of time that HEWs spend on various work duties and to explore differences in urban compared with rural settings and among regions.