Living Goods

08/14/2026

A routine home visit in Zamsé, Burkina Faso. Community Health Worker Mariam noticed something wasn't right — and instead of moving on, she stayed.
She listened. She asked the right questions. She encouraged Monique to seek care early.

That one decision changed everything. With consistent follow-up, Monique had a safe pregnancy and delivery. Today, both mother and baby are healthy.
This is what happens when care starts close to home — before a small concern becomes an emergency.

Full story: https://livinggoods.org/media/community-health-worker-life-saving-support/

08/10/2026

AI has the potential to transform community health, but only when it strengthens, not replaces, the people delivering care. Living Goods leaders Emilie Chambert and Kanishka Katara co-authored a Lancet Primary Care commentary with partners from the Community Health Impact Coalition, calling for government-owned AI solutions that help community health workers deliver better care and reach more families.https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanprc/article/PIIS3050-5143(26)00039-7/fulltext

08/10/2026

What does it actually take for AI to transform community health? According to our CEO Emilie Chambert, the barrier isn't innovation — it's integration.

New research published in The Lancet Primary Care backs this up: while many organizations are piloting AI in community health, very few solutions are meaningfully embedded into public health systems.

For AI to genuinely strengthen care, it needs to be:
✔️ Government-led and sustainable
✔️ Integrated into existing health systems
✔️ Designed to strengthen — not replace — community health workers
The goal isn't more pilots. It's AI that governments can own, fund, and scale alongside the people already doing the work.

Read more: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanprc/article/PIIS3050-5143(26)00039-7/fulltext

08/07/2026

For 15 years, Community Health Promoter Elizabeth Mideva has gone door to door in Vihiga, Kenya, giving women the information and choices they need to stay healthy.

One young mother she visited had had four children in four years — exhausted, unwell, and struggling to keep her family afloat. Elizabeth answered her questions patiently, dispelled her fears, and connected her to a family planning open day at Lyanaginga Subcounty Hospital, where she chose a five-year implant.

What followed: her health improved, her confidence returned, her home stabilized. In 2021, she welcomed a healthy, planned baby.

Elizabeth says this story is one of many. She's right. When CHWs are trained, supported, and connected to strong government systems, families don't just survive — they thrive.

08/06/2026

We're pleased to be part of the 2026 Chat for Health Accelerator.
Over the next six months, we'll explore how AI-powered tools can help strengthen community health systems by making it easier for people to access trusted health information and support, wherever they are.

We're looking forward to learning alongside the many inspiring organizations in this cohort.

Every day, millions of people struggle to access basic healthcare. Health systems are under increasing pressure, frontline health workers are overstretched, and barriers such as language, literacy and geography continue to stand in the way.

08/03/2026

“At the beginning of my pregnancy, I didn't know when to go to the health center or how to protect myself.”

23-year-old Sinare Salamata, from Gademtenga, Burkina Faso, had just given birth to her first child when she shared this. What changed her experience was one person: Community Health Worker Ouédraogo Patinda Daniel.

He encouraged her first antenatal visit. He supported her through regular home visits, taught her about iron supplements, treatment adherence, mosquito nets, and how to recognize danger signs. And after the birth, he kept checking in on her and her baby.

“In a context where access to healthcare is difficult, his role was essential,” she says.
This is what a trusted CHW relationship looks like — from first trimester to postpartum care.

07/31/2026

Sunrise in Mayuge District, Uganda. Community Health Extension Worker Nyende Abdul Aziz sets out with a notebook, a smartphone, and something harder to measure: the trust of every family on his route.

He mentors Village Health Teams during home visits. He shares real-time data from Uganda's electronic Community Health Information System (eCHIS) with nurses at local facilities. And through that daily rhythm, national health policy becomes something families actually feel — faster treatment for children, timely advice for mothers, communities that stay informed.

Nyende's work is backed by the Ministry of Health, The Global Fund, Africa Frontline First, and Living Goods.

“I may not wear a white coat,” he says, “but we're changing lives, one home at a time.”

Read Nyende's full story: https://livinggoods.org/media/day-in-life-chew-uganda-nyende/

07/27/2026

Can digital innovation increase the return on community health investment? New evidence from Teso North, Kenya says yes — when it's built for government systems and designed to scale.

Our latest research shows that embedding telemedicine within government community health frameworks:

→ Improves clinical decision-making
→ Strengthens maternal and child health care
→ Sharpens referral pathways
→ Builds greater caregiver trust in community-delivered services

As Kenya moves toward Universal Health Coverage, the takeaway for 2026 is clear: digital tools deliver the most value when governments can own, finance, and scale them — not when they run parallel to public systems.

Read the full study: https://livinggoods.org/media/telemedicine-community-health-kenya-roi/

07/22/2026

Trust is the foundation of every last-mile health system.

When a community health worker sits with a parent to explain a fever, guide a feeding schedule, or walk through a vaccination timeline, something bigger than a single conversation happens. That parent learns to trust the health system — and that trust is what brings them back the next time their child needs care.

This is the quiet infrastructure behind stronger communities: not just clinics and supply chains, but relationships built one home visit at a time.

Investing in CHWs isn't just good policy. It's what keeps families connected to care, and it's saving lives every day.