Women healthcare workers from the Pakistan Polio Programme met Melinda French Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, in a virtual roundtable to share updates and launch the next phase of the Female Frontline Worker Co-Design Initiative.
Participants shared their experiences from this initiative, which aims to systematically listen to and learn from female frontline workers to help solve final barriers to ending polio in Pakistan. They also shared their ideas and aspirations for the future, after Pakistan has successfully achieved this national goal, a news release on Thursday said.
“My self-confidence has grown from participating in this initiative because it is so meaningful that the Polio Programme has taken the time to listen to our experiences and ideas, and that some of the solutions we proposed are being adopted to improve campaigns as well as our work experience,” said one frontline worker. “I am so motivated to hear that we will be supported by the programme in building up other skill sets so we can be ready for other opportunities after polio is gone.”
Pakistan’s National Emergency Operations Centre for Polio Eradication (NEOC) has approved select co-designed solutions from this process and will incorporate them into upcoming immunization campaigns, community engagement efforts, and other day-to-day operations this year.
