Communication

What is a quick,effective way to reach the masses directly? This was the question that got the creative juices flowing. Communication efforts through mass media (TV, Radio & Press) and print materials were already underway as part of the multi media campaign. A need was felt to complement these with a direct contact with the village community to give an added impetus to demand generation for family planning.

Inter-personal communication (IPC) is one of the most effective means of generating awareness. With a large network of frontline workers in SIFPSAs NGO project areas, IPC offers a great opportunity for reaching out to the community. Workers, trained in IPC, made door-to-door contacts as per their convenience and recruited clients as part of their duties. It was felt that the network of over 7000 trained volunteers in 14 districts could be better utilized for making an impact and generating mass awareness, if their activities were implemented in a focussed manner and 'pulsed' at regular intervals. It was with this aim that the first awareness week, the 'Parivar Swasthya Jagrukta Saptah' (family health awareness week) was planned and implemented.

All NGOs and cooperative projects of SIFPSA organized the awareness week in 14 districts from February 14-19, 2000. Three key messages to be publicized were developed, highlighting that spacing leads to better health of the mother and child, pregnancies can be controlled by the couple and that contraceptives could be effectively used for spacing births. Over 7000 workers in around 13000 villages implemented a uniform plan for awareness generation.

On the first two days Programme Offiers from SIFPSA visited each district and oriented the community based distribution workers (CBDs) on their role in the awareness week, with special emphasis on the key messages to be conveyed and organization of group meetings. Over the next two days, CBDs went from door-to-door visiting at least 50 households inviting women to a group meeting to be held later in the week. The key messages on family planning were also conveyed and stickers and posters placed in prominent places. On the last two days of the campaign the CBDs held two group meetings each wherein they re-iterated the three key messages & generated discussion on family planning through interactive means involving measures like role play & games.

Programme officers from SIFPSA visited villages in their allotted districts on the last four days to witness the activities of CBDs. The response from both CBD workers as well as the community has been very encouraging.

CBD workers reached around 380,000 women through door-to-door contact in two days. Around 13000 group meetings were held within two days, wherein approximately 430,000 women participated.

Far more impressive than the numbers reached, was the enthusiasm with which CBD workers organized the meetings. Songs on family welfare were sung to popular folk tunes and role plays were performed with aplomb. Meeting places were decorated, wall charts with messages put up and wall writings appeared with key messages. Satisfied clients turned out in force and advocated the use of family planning methods during the meetings.

To complement the work being done at the village level. Doordarshan, AIR, as well as mainline newspapers in the state extended their cooperation in extensive coverage of the activities. Messages from Mr. Sardar Singh, Family Welfare Minister and Ms. Aradhana Johri, Executive Director, SIFPSA, were broadcast on All India Radio. Key campaign messages were also broadcast from time to time on both AIR and Doordarshan.

The success of the first awareness campaign combined with the need to generate awareness about TT immunization campaign naturally led to the second campaign. This time the specific objective was to publicize the immunization dates and create awareness regarding the hazards of tetanus. The selected audience this time was primarily pregnant women and their influencers. As earlier, CBDs visited households for two days, conveying the message of the TT immunization campaign.

Spreading awareness about the dates for vaccination through group meetings and distribution printed hand bills highlighting the need for TT immunization formed the cornerstone of this effort.. The CBDs also listed all pregnant women in their area so as to ensure that they availed the immunization services.