Abstract:
Although the importance of early identification and intervention of infants at risk for communication delays and disorders have been advocated and emphasized in literature, case finding and service delivery in rural areas in South Africa appears to be problematic. The implementation of early communication intervention (ECI) within public service delivery has been proposed in the past. The primary health care (PHC) package had to be considered as a possible vehicle to be utilized for the implementation of ECI functions in rural communities. Against this background the existing identification methods and referral systems, utilized in Ditsobotla sub-district, were described in the current study to determine the limitations in case finding, and the feasibility of the implementation of ECI functions in collaboration with other PHC programmes. A descriptive dominant-less-dominant model provided the design to describe the identification process and teamwork in Ditsobotla sub-district. Data triangulation was utilized to improve reliability and validity of results which entailed a rating scale, face-to-face interviews with PHC personnel (participants in Group 1) and face-to-face interviews with PHC programme managers (participants in group 2). The results indicated that the capacity of facilities and human resources to support the implementation of ECI functions vary within the sub-district. Therefore an incremental implementation of ECI functions is feasible in collaboration with the existing PHC package. The current identification methods and referral systems are limited and a great need for collaboration exists. ECI functions need to be implemented formally within the PHC package and guidelines for such an implementation are provided. Furthermore the identification process to be introduced needs to form part of the incremental implementation of ECI functions. The implications are discussed in terms of ECI service delivery in rural South Africa. The proposed process of incremental implementation of ECI functions in rural areas, i.e. Ditsobotla sub-district, within the PHC package is provided. The need to develop identification methods, referral systems and guidelines for the implementation of ECI in PHC are emphasized. Future practice-based research is recommended in order to improve ECI service delivery in rural areas in South Africa. Copyright
