Health meeting in Chhatola Village

With the launch of National Rural Health Mission in 2005, Chirag decided that the best approach to health care in the region would be to attempt to strengthen the existing government efforts and to take advantage of opportunities that the NRHM presents.

The NRHM initiative includes the training of ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activists) workers, who are stationed in each village and are equipped with basic health care supply. Part of our Preventive and Promotive Health program is to assist the Government in training the ASHA workers and to support them in their everyday work.

Another project initiated by the NRHM in order to decentralize health planning is the delegation of some responsibilities to the Gram Panchayat. Their Health and Sanitation Committees are now responsible to elaborate health plans for the villages. At Chirag, we presently work with 65 Gram Panchayats to strengthen the capacities of their members. We work with them in hope of achieving the following goals. We seek:

• A reduction in waterborne diseases, particularly, diarrhoea and jaundice.
• An improvement in maternal/child health and social security services delivered by the government.
• A reduction in morbidity amongst woman, with a special focus on anaemia and leucorrhoea.
• To improve the gender balance in the 0-6 age group.