CHEWs Salary: Community Health extension worker salary in Nigeria

CHEWs Salary: Community Health extension worker salary in Nigeria.

Community health extension workers are the bedrock of primary health care in Nigeria and infact Africa. Most primary health care centres in rural Communities are run by CHEWs and for a truth, they provide critical and even emergency health services using a legal document called a standing order…

The problem of community health workers or officers in Nigeria is the discrimination they face from other health workers especially nurses and midwives. CHEWs just like nurses and doctors are required every where and they can work in both private and public hospitals. I have seen adverts from the UK where the NHS were requesting for the services of CHEWs and other health assistants.

That said, I want us to look into the remuneration of community health extension workers, JCHEWs and community health practitioners.

Junior community health extension workers (JCHEW) working in primary health care centres especially in rural areas earns about #60,000 – #80,000 in many states in Nigeria…. Senior community health extension workers get a take home pay of about #120,000 naira pee month. Please be informed that CHEWs also work in general hospitals, federal medical centres and teaching hospitals.

Community health extension workers in private hospitals are not well paid compared to their counterparts in public hospitals….for example, a CHEW or Community health officer or practitioner in private hospitals earn between #40,000 naira to #50,000 naira….may be less.

It is now common to see Community health extension workers go for a 6 months training in some private hospitals to learn “auxiliary nursing” so as to sharpen their clinical skills….with this, it is an added advantage as regards ease of employment and remuneration.

It is also true that many CHEWs in Nigeria especially in the north earns below minimum wage….but his is been addressed.

The Nigerian Government must look again into the salary of CHEWs with a view to increasing it, putting into consideration the ravaging inflation in Nigeria and globally. CHEWs need to be paid hazard and rural allowance.

Thank you for reading.

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