Healthefoundation HIV education and prevention training

Mentoring Program Launched in Kampala, Uganda

Health[e]Foundation, together with the funder Cordaid, came to the conclusion that mentorship would be a perfect adaptation of the Train-the-Trainer model to address a new group of health care workers in the HIV field.  Thanks to Interact, doctors/clinical officers, nurses, counselors and midwives of the Kampala City Clinics that had previously done an HIV[e]Education training were selected to join a one-day mentoring training.  The training focused on communication, adult learning and mentoring skills, and afterwards a contract was signed with Health[e]Foundation to train three colleagues working in HIV/AIDS. The mentors were allowed to look for eligible participants within their own clinic and field of work.

Mentors received a schedule with three milestones: (1) Provide complete data of their mentees to the Interact office, including personal details and completed clinical cases. They were advised to sign an agreement with their mentees on when and where to meet; (2) show to the Interact office that at least 7 modules were completed by each mentee approximately halfway through the learning period; and (3) make sure the mentees complete the modules and participate in the closing workshop. Each milestone made the mentors eligible for a reimbursement, but that did not seem to be the most important incentive for them.

At the workshop for the mentees, extensive attention was paid to evaluation. During the focus group discussions it became clear that mentees were extremely satisfied with the way they studied. They praised their mentors for their availability, efforts, and guidance.

Forty-two of 45 mentees attended the workshop. Almost all completed all the modules and received the certificate.

Based on the success of the first mentoring training, plans have been made to continue this format. The second group of mentors began in January 2010 with a combined group of former and new mentors from the Kampala City Clinics as well as new mentors from the Uganda Catholic Medical Bureau, who had just finished HIV[e]Education in December 2009.