Health

Objectives

Up-gradation of community health status focus on women, girls, children, mother and child health’s aspects.
Public health service and schemes awareness.
HIV(AIDS) intervention
Improvement in public food distribution services (Ration Shop) and availability of safe drinking water.
To Provide support and help in the situation of earthquakes, floods and pandemics like COVID.

Programme

COVID Relief and Awareness

In the background of Covid-related critical situations, the program was executed in Bhor and Velhe Talukas of Pune District from June 2021 to May 2022.
The programme conducted activities as follows:

Ration distribution to 100 needy families focuses on daily wagers, pregnant women, mothers & tribal communities.
Nutritious food items and multivitamins distributions for 300 undernourished children.
To make available medicine and medical instruments to two COVID centres attached to Public health care and rural hospitals.
Spreading awareness and educating people about COVID preventive care, post-COVID precautions, timely testing and vaccination.
To provide help and guidance in concern with COVID-related services to people in the area by distributing awareness material and attending covid related people through the use of help desks placed in the public health centres.
To help and guide non-Covid patients coming to public health centres regarding available health services and schemes, especially for pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers for getting benefits of it.
Spreading COVID-related awareness by providing material to public health workers (Asha) and local volunteers to distribute it in villages.
To create awareness material on – How to take safety precautions to prevent COVID infection, the importance of vaccination and timely COVID testing and How to take care in home isolation and post-COVID period.
Vaccination campaign in tribal hamlets and help them to solve their ration card-related issues.
To conduct medical haemoglobin check-up camps for women and girls.

Covid relief work and Awareness Drive (April 2020 to September 2021)

Awareness drive was conducted on Covid precautions and vaccination importance in 8 tribal hamlets and 30 villages in Velhe and Bhor Talukas of Pune District.
Ration distribution drive was conducted in 30 villages. Under this initiative, ration supply was made available to 361 families with a focus on daily wagers, pregnant women, mal nutritious children, single parents and lactating mothers. Also, Nutritious food kits were distributed to 225 children.
Two months dry ration supply was provided to 240 katkari’s / tribal families and multivitamin medicine for 114 children.
It proved a big help to sustain their families in Covid affected situation when there was no earning source available.
Medical safety precautions items like hand gloves, N95 masks, Surgical masks, Sanitizer and hand wash, along with essential medicines and oxygen concentrators were provided to public health services centres, Covid isolation centres and rural hospitals to support them during the pandemic’s pick situation.
Dry Ration, masks, hand wash distribution and Covid preventive precautions awareness drive was conducted at the beginning of 2020 for 125 tribal community members.

Covid Emergency work in 40 Tribal Hamlets in Junnar Taluka from (June 2021 to November 2021)

Dry food and multivitamin distribution–Food like dates, peanuts cakes, nutritious grain snacks and multivitamin tonic were distributed to 225 children in 40 tribal hamlets. It helped them in a critical situation like Covid when sufficient food intake especially nutritious food was not available. Also, the intake of multivitamin tonics got supportive to boost their immunity.
Medicine and safety precaution items supply– Provided N95 masks, disposable masks, hand gloves, sanitizer, cough syrup and tablets / medicine on a multivitamin, antacids, antibiotics, antiallergenic to the public Covid centre and rural hospital. This supply helped the centre to provide proper treatment to affected people.
Covid awareness and material preparation–Awareness material like posters and handbills on- How to take safety precautions to prevent COVID infection, the importance of immunization and timely COVID testing and how to take care in home isolation and post COVID period, was prepared by the Rachana team. The material was distributed with help of pre-primary centre workers, health workers and volunteers in 40 hamlets and meetings were also arranged to spread awareness with the help of village-level pre-primary centre workers for community people and parents.
The information and awareness spread on the benefits of vaccination, the possibility of the covid’s third wave and misconnects about vaccination. The communication and discussions were conducted with village-level head representatives to complete the vaccination at the village level. This activity boosted the vaccination process in the area. The initiative was instrumented to make the community aware of Covid care precautions and public health-related services.
Help Desk Services–The help desk was set up to provide help and guidance in concerns with Covid-related services in the Primary health centre, located in Lenyadri village. The desk kept working three days a week. The associated sub-centres and Covid patients’ isolation centres were also visited by health workers to provide Covid-related information and guidance.
COVID awareness material was distributed to people and also provide the right information about Covid related services by the Help Desk. As the COVID centre’s staff were overburdened due to excess work, the desk person attended people properly, controlled the rush of patients, maintained the right distance between people and provide the right information and guidance in concern with available services. He also guided them on covid prevention, how to wear the mask properly, how to keep it clean, proper use of sanitiser, post-Covid care, vaccination importance, home isolation precautions, and available health schemes for women. The help desk service got supportive in helping patients and the Covid centre’s staff.
The information and guidance about available health services were provided to non-Covid patients, like pregnant women, parents of mal nutritious children, diabetes and persons with blood pressure. The communication was done to provide referral services to mal nutritious children with the concerned health authority. The medical check-up was arranged for the Children, who were severely ill. The guidance was also provided to pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers for getting the benefits from their health concern schemes. A total of 249 women were covered under this process.

Walk Off COVID 19 (August to October 2021)

1- Program executed to channelized ration cards availability to Tribal Community.

The follow-up was taken to get residential proofs like Aadhar card and its related documents with the village head, Aadhar centre and E- Seva Kendra. The meetings were conducted with the taluka level division and ration authority. 33 families received ration cards out of these efforts and now they are getting regular ration supplies from the ration shops.
The regular follow-up was undertaken with 30 families and their ration shops for the necessary documentation to complete the ration cards renewal process. 31 families got renovation of their old ration cards. So they are receiving ration supply on a regular basis.
The ongoing communication and follow-up were conducted with concerned authorities to regularise 36 families documents for linking their Aadhar cards with ration cards. 36 families ration cards were successfully linked with Aadhar cards and they are channelized properly.
A total of 60 families received birth certificates of their family members by taking constant follow up with concerned authorities, gram panchayats, school authorities and their family members additional names were added to their ration cards. The addition of family members to ration cards increased the quota of ration quantity for these families.

2- Program for Rural Community – Vaccination Awareness.

Coverage 30 Village in Bhor and Velhe Taluka

The vaccination campaign was executed on a vast level in all villages. Posters were displaced, handbills were distributed and the information and awareness were sprayed with the use of loudspeakers, arranging vehicle rallies by presenting songs and slogans and providing answers to people’s questions on vaccination-related miss concepts.
Project staff and volunteers involved in vaccination work at regular vaccination centres and in vaccination camps arranged on the village level. They were involved in a total of 75 camps. With the help of ASHA, health staff, local governance members and volunteers, vaccination camps were arranged. Volunteers, nurse doctors, MPW, Rachana’s staff looked after all management of these camps like arranging people queues and providing proper guidance on vaccination and care after vaccination.
The wake-off team and volunteers helped to arrange villager’s rows, guided health staff to maintain proper arrangements and gave information on necessary precautions after vaccination to encourage people to take the vaccination. They also arranged vehicles for needy people to reach the vaccination centre. They pursued health staff to vaccinate people, who don’t have Aadhar cards by making them consider ration cards as identity proof. Also taking the help of Taluka level health authority to regularise the vaccination process. When the vaccination was not available at the village level, they pursued and send people to vaccination centres, which were being operated at PHC, sub-centre and taluka’s hospitals
75 volunteers team was built and orientated to spread awareness in villages on Covid precautions, care after vaccination, post-Covid care, vaccination-related misunderstanding and how to complete village-level vaccination. Whenever a vaccination campaign was arranged by the health authority in the area, project staff along with 75 volunteers did home visits, communicated on what’s app groups and spread awareness amongst villagers to complete their vaccination.

* Vaccination coverage during this process —

The number of people who got vaccinated in the age group of 45 and above is as follows.
First Dose- 1795 people, Second Dose—3627 People

The number of people who got vaccinated in the age group between 18 to 44 is as follows.
First Dose- 6240 people, Second Dose— 4897 people

Community Action For Nutrition (CAN) Projects

The Tribal Development Department (TDD) of Maharashtra state through the process of ‘Empowering Tribal Communities to improve nutrition & to strengthen awareness on Nutrition related services’ has undertaken the Community Action for Nutrition (CAN) project.

Rachana was implementing the project in Junnar taluka of Pune District covering 40 tribal villages and 40 pre-primary centres from October 2018 to August 2021.
The intervention reached 1250 children between the age group of 0 to 6 and their parents. Parents were oriented towards proper nutritious input. Also received treatment and counselling by the public health department and ASHA health workers to keep away their children from malnutrition.
890 children’s anthropometry is being conducted regularly in public places in 40 villages.
480 children were undergone monthly follow up to upgrade their weight and height.
121 mal nutritional children successfully brought to normal grade and 128 children adopted to take nutritious food intake on regular basis. 359 children are identified as growth faltering category, have been controlled and retained.
354 primary schools adopted nutritious food intake in their midday meal scheme.
40 pre-primary centre workers and 40 ASHA health works are trained and successfully addressing nutritious issues at the village level.

Building Community Action for Nutrition (B-Can)

The goal of the project was to Building Community Awareness and Action to Improve Child Nutrition Practices and Services in Selected Tribal, Rural and Urban areas of Maharashtra State.

Rachana has implemented the project in 80 villages/hamlets of Bhor and Velha Blocks of Pune District, Maharashtra state from January 2019 to September 2021.
The program reached 3720 children between the age of 0 to 6 years. Parents of the children have received orientation and counselling services focused on behaviour changes towards nutrition-related practices.
748 malnutrition children upgraded to the normal rank. 430 children are identified as growth faltering category, have been controlled and retained.
246 mothers stopped giving junk food intake and learned to prepare homemade nutritious food appropriate to their children’s health.
80 Anganwadi workers and 80 Asha health workers (As nutrition friends) upgrade their knowledge and capacity to address nutrition-related issues.

Preventing Health Care and Anaemia Control Among Women

Women in 7 villages were trained and oriented towards anaemia and preventive care from 2008 to 2018.

The effect was seen as an increase in Haemoglobin levels in 68% of women. Women and their families are now following these new practices in their daily life.
Women were trained with a focus on women’s anatomy, reproductive, respiratory and digestive systems in context with anaemia, reasons behind anaemia and remedies, preparation of medicine from medicinal plants, kitchen garden formation, vermin culture beds formation, use of iron utensils for cooking, adoption of healthy food habits and lifestyle.

Community- Based Monitoring and Planning

The National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) was launched with the goal of improving the availability of and access to quality health care for people, especially those residing in rural areas, the poor, women and children.
The main aim of this program was to enable the community, community-based groups and committees to become equal partners in the health planning process.

Rachana has facilitated this process in 120 villages in Bhor and Velha Talukas of Pune district with a population of 46000, which is a backward & mountainous region From 2008 to 2018.
The work was focusing on 8 Public health centres, 16 health sub-centres, one rural hospital and one sub-district hospital and 60 village health sanitation water supply & nutrition committees. The process was successful to make an impact on 46000 rural populations and 8650 children.
The community is monitoring aspects of public health care systems including its coverage, access, quality, effectiveness, the presence of health care personnel and their behaviour at service points; possible denial of care and negligence towards community and other needs of the community.
Village-level Women and children-related health services became well functioning. Health services in 6 primary health centres and 16 sub-centres are improved.
The community representatives like journalists, advocates and NGO members have started to participate in the improvement of public health services.

Food Distribution Drive for Tribal Communities

The food distribution drive was conducted in the year 2008-2009.
1,50,000 Meals were provided.
Necessary material supply was made to the 13 tribal communitie’s hamlets in hilly and isolated areas of the Sahyadri Mountains and 3 schools in the remote villages to prepare the nutritious khichadi.
These Communities are educationally and economically backwards.
People saved the money which was being used for one-time food. Self-help groups were built for savings and taking loans from the groups to fulfil essential needs like the purchase of medicine, hospitalization, school fees and books for children.

AIDS Intervention Programme

1,50,330 Truckers and communities from twenty villages had been covered under this program from 2000 to 2007.

Awareness, counselling and medication were provided to prevent HIV/AIDS infection in women and rural communities with a focus on the most sensitive group of truck drivers and cleaners.

Rural Community, Mother and Children and Health Improvement Initiatives

Initiatives were undertaken between 1992 to 2008 in 57 villages as follows:

Family planning awareness
Reducing the rate of infant death
Childbirth registration
Mother and child care
Nutrition intake and immunization of the mother and child
Newborn childcare
Sanitation and hygiene practices
Preventive health care
Availability of public health services and health schemes to upgrade community, mother and child health status.

The Outcome of the Intervention

Primary health services and health schemes reached in isolated villages.
Women were orientated and trained regarding family planning importance, nutrition intake and preventative health care.
Increased community and women representation in health committees and groups.
Improved hygiene and sanitation conditions.
Regularised childbirth certification.

Health Determinants

Capacity-building programs were carried out in 25 villages from 2001 to 2008.

Involved village groups & health committees to orient them about health influencing aspects like availability of safe drinking water, food security schemes (ration), ration cards and public health services.
Public food distribution service centres and public health services reached more community people and reduced drinking water problems.
750 families received ration cards.

Nutrition Rights Program

Promoting a comprehensive and action-based approach to address malnutrition in Maharashtra

Rachana implemented this program to promote community participation towards making more effective nutrition-related programs
[ Integrated child development services and Jijau Mission. ]
RACHANA worked in 15 villages with a population of 11500, focusing on 504 children enrolled in ICDC Centres, 750 parents and the community.
The program was successful to achieve its goals. The malnutrition in children decreased by 50%. Mothers were empowered by the knowledge of children’s health care and nutrition.
The community groups involved in the monitoring of ICDC centres including its schemes, coverage, access, quality, effectiveness, fund management and utilisation, availability of facilities est. Also, the ICDS services-related communication and coordination were improved from the village to the district level.