About Last Mile Health
Last Mile Health is a global NGO dedicated to saving lives in remote communities and improving access to essential health services. In Ethiopia, Last Mile Health has introduced innovation in training community health workers, known nationally as health extension workers, through a blended learning approach that incorporates both digital and in-person elements.
Last Mile Health aimed to design and pilot context-specific solutions to improve the quality, coverage, and uptake of life-saving newborn and child health interventions. Recognising the importance of engaging community and frontline health workers, they used Human-Centered Design as a key tool for assessment and solution design.
From insight to iteration
Derz conducted an assessment across three regions, gathering insights and identifying gaps in the Integrated Community Case Management (iCCM) system. By engaging community health workers, caretakers, and key stakeholders, including woreda and regional administrators, we identified the most pressing needs and pain points, and built a deep understanding of the target audience's beliefs, experiences, and expectations.
We combined these field findings with Last Mile Health's own quantitative and qualitative data to synthesize insights and develop initial concepts. These became the foundation for a co-creation session with community health workers, health center supervisors, and regional stakeholders.
Through participant feedback, prototypes were iterated and refined. After further iterations, nine prototypes were developed and tested over 12 weeks in 15 health posts across three regions.
The prototypes led to significant improvements in the care of children under five, including faster and more effective patient identification, assessment, and delivery of quality care. Mid- and end-line assessments reviewed the desirability, feasibility, viability, and sustainability of the prototypes.
- Enhanced community health worker knowledge and skills
- Improved assessment and diagnosis capabilities
- Increased care-seeking behavior in target communities
- Facilitation of continuous care for children under five