25-32
TRAINING FOR SHORT-TERM AND
LONG-TERM PROBLEM SOLVING
Training in nutrition should provide health workers with skills, methods, and ideas
for helping people solve their immediate food problems. But it also needs to
prepare them for working with people toward lasting solutions to the underlying
problems that contribute to poor nutrition.
On page 25-31 we show some of the problem-solving activities that might be
covered in a training course on nutrition. They are grouped into 4 categories, ranging
from short-term emergencies to long-term needs.
Clearly, health workers should respond at once to any immediate, life-threatening
problems in their communities (such as starvation of children). But as people work
together and gain a deeper awareness of their underlying needs, the health worker
can help them look for more far-reaching answers.
The health or nutrition worker’s biggest challenge will be to see how fast he can
move the main focus of community action from short-term to long-term
needs. He can help people look to the future and plan ahead.
WARNING ABOUT FOOD SUPPLEMENTS:
When people are starving, seeing that they get food must be the first priority.
However, free food provided from the outside has often created more problems than it
has solved:
• Food supplements have sometimes driven
poor farmers to economic ruin by forcing
down prices of local crops.
• Provision of free powdered milk to mothers
has caused increased bottle feeding, costing
the health and lives of many babies.
• Instead of helping people become more
self-reliant, food supplements often increase
their dependency on outside help. Studies
in several countries show that after long
periods of receiving food supplements, poor
nutrition is as big a problem as ever —or
bigger.
Unfortunately, some relief organizations still
focus on giving free food rather than on helping
people correct the causes of their food problems.
Some organizations even donate foods such as
candies or chocolate-flavored ‘protein bars’ to
health programs training village health workers!
Discuss with health workers the dangers of
accepting such gifts.
Free food supplements
should carry the same warnings
as dangerous, habit-forming
medicines. Their use should
be limited to short-term
emergencies only.