Table 1

Table of included studies

AuthorYearCountriesFocus areaPublication typeAim or purpose of the publication
Aantjes16 2014Ethiopia, Malawi, South Africa, ZambiaImplementationCase studies, mixed methods, comparing four countriesEvaluation of civil society led community home-based care programmes for HIV.
Adie2014NigeriaImplementationCase study, mixed methods, 32 focus groups, 78 questionnaires, observation, document reviewEvaluation of PHC implementation and strengthening through community involvement.
Austin-Evelyn18 2017South AfricaImplementationProgramme evaluation, mixed methods in one province, 91 CHWsEvaluation of implementation PHC re-engineering in Eastern Cape
Baatiema19 2013Ghana Qualitative, 17 individual, 2 focus groups and a community dialogue with service users, providers and community leadersEvaluation of community participation in the community-based health planning and services in rural Ghana
Bam20 2013South AfricaModelCommentaryDescribing the model of COPC in Tshwane
Curry21 2012EthiopiaImplementationQualitative, 14 focus groups, 140 participantsEvaluating community perspectives on roles of government and community in strengthening PHC in low-income settings
De Neve22 2017Lesotho, Mozambique, South Africa, SwazilandImplementationCase studies, qualitative methods, 60 interviews with donors, government officials and expert observersEvaluation of factors involved in upscaling CHW programmes for HIV in the context of complex health systems and multiple donors
Dookie23 2012South AfricaImplementationCommentaryChallenges facing PHC delivery in South Africa and mechanisms to assist planning
Giugliani24 2014AngolaImplementationCase study, document review, CHW records, qualitative interviewsEvaluation of implementation of CHW programme in Luanda
Jinabhai25 2015South AfricaImplementationProgramme evaluation of seven districts from perspective of managers and CHWsTo evaluate implementation of ward-based outreach teams in National Health Insurance pilot sites across South Africa
Keegan2 2008South AfricaHistoryCommentaryDescribes the historical development of COPC from the 1940s onwards in South Africa
Kinkel26 2013South AfricaImplementationQualitative, focus group interviews with seven health posts in one districtEvaluation of implementation of ward-based outreach teams in Tshwane
Knight27 2017South AfricaEducationCase study, mixed methods, 183 medical studentsEvaluates an innovative longitudinal community-based educational initiative built around the principles of COPC for undergraduate students in Kwa-Zulu Natal
Labonte28 2014Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, Democratic Republic CongoImplementationCase studies, mixed methodsEvaluating the comprehensiveness of PHC
Marcus29 2017South AfricaImplementationProgramme evaluation, mixed methods, 14 subdistricts and three best practice sites, viewpoint of managersEvaluated implementation of ward-based outreach teams from perspective of managers
Marcus30 2015South AfricaModelEducational bookPractical guide to doing COPC
Marcus31 2013South AfricaModelEducational bookPractical guide to doing COPC
Moosa32 2017South AfricaImplementationQualitative, 41 district managersViews of managers on implementation of ward-based outreach teams in Johannesburg
Munshi33 2017South AfricaImplementationQualitative evaluation in one health district: Five focus group discussions with CHWs; 14 in-depth interviews with team leaders and managers and ethnographic observationsEvaluation of implementation of ward-based outreach teams in Gauteng
Ndima34 2015MozambiqueImplementationQualitative, 29 interviews with CHWs, supervisors and community leadersTo evaluate the effect of supervision on CHW motivation and policy implementation
Nelligan35 2016KenyaEducationQualitative, interviews with eight family medicine registrars and five faculty membersEvaluating the inclusion of COPC in the curriculum for postgraduate family medicine training
Noble36 2009South AfricaHistoryCommentaryHistorical analysis of incorporating COPC into the Durban Medical School in the 1940s and 1950s
Nxumalo37 2016South AfricaImplementationEthnographic qualitative study in three community-based organisations: 23 key informant interviews, 3 focus group interviews, observations, 74 participant observationsTo explore factors that affect provision of care and access to care from CHWs in Gauteng and Eastern Cape
Nxumalo38 2014South AfricaImplementationCase studies, qualitative, of three CHW programmes using key informant interviews, focus groups and observationsEvaluated the challenges of implementing COPC through ward-based outreach teams
Olayo39 2014KenyaEffectivenessQuasi-experimental studyEvaluation of effectiveness of COPC approach on health and social indicators
Oliver44 2015KenyaImplementationCase study, mixed methods in two communitiesExploring CHWs’ views of their practice and the challenges they face
Padayachee45 2013South AfricaImplementationProgramme evaluation, qualitative evaluation, 27 managers, focus groups with task team and CHWsRapid assessment of implementation of ward-based outreach teams in North West
Perry46 2017Ethiopia, Rwanda, Zambia, ZimbabweImplementationReviewReview of structure and functioning of CHW programmes in multiple countries
Pfaff47 2010South AfricaImplementationCase studyEvaluation of a COPC model in the context of people with stroke
Philips48 2014South AfricaHistoryCommentaryAnalysis of policymaking with regard to COPC post-1994 in South Africa
Reid49 2010South AfricaModelCommentaryReflection on the model of COPC
Schneider50 2014South AfricaImplementationCase study, mixed methods, 27 telephonic interviews, 9 focus groups, document analysisEvaluation of implementation of ward-based outreach teams in North West
Schneider51 2015South AfricaImplementationProgramme evaluation of one urban and two rural subdistricts, 97 key informant interviews, 10 focus groups, 23 observations of CHWs, 16 patient interviewsEvaluation of reorientation of community-based services in Western Cape from focus on HIV and tuberculosis towards more comprehensive policy goals aligned with COPC
Singh13 2013Sub-Saharan AfricaModelCommentaryOverview of the role of and need for CHWs in sub-Saharan Africa
Story52 2017Rwanda, SenegalImplementationReview of case studiesPresents a new framework for institutionalisation of community-based services for mothers and children
Van Rensburg53 2011South AfricaHistoryCommentaryHistorical analysis of CHW programmes in the late Apartheid period
Van Rooyen54 2017South AfricaEducationQualitative, documents from 242 medical students and 50 interviews with CHWsTo evaluate the impact of peer-assisted learning sessions on student and CHW capability in a COPC context
WHO55 2017Sub-Saharan AfricaImplementationPolicy briefSummary of evidence and policy recommendations for impact of CHW programmes in African region
Zulu56 2016South AfricaImplementationProgramme evaluation, mixed methods, survey of 368 CHWs and interviews with 17 managers in one rural districtEvaluation of ward-based outreach teams in Kwa-Zulu Natal

  • CHWs, community health workers; COPC, community-orientated primary care; PHC, primary healthcare.