Programme Activities:
Health workers will inform mothers, especially those with limited education or who cannot read, using this series of washable, easily transportable, and simple-to-use health guides. These handkerchiefs with drawings, diagrams, and graphs, contain useful health information, and will be distributed to health care providers throughout Maharashtra. The text is structured to encourage an interactive dialogue about these issues, rather than a lecture. Each illustration is accompanied by questions to help encourage discussion, key information the audience should know, and actions they should take. Designed for use in face-to-face counselling and group education settings to help women learn about their health. It offers clear, easy-to-understand information on how to stay healthy during pregnancy, breastfeeding, and continuous feeding, rehydration solutions, water disinfection methods, and more.
Intended Results: These cloth guides will be designed and used by health workers and other who counsel mothers. It can be used for one-to-one counselling or with a small group. Mothers, especially illiterate and those with minimal education, will be targeted with these guides which contain illustrations that encourage discussion. These cloth guides will serve more useful than a flip chart because they are easily washable, easily transportable, and simple to use.
Programme Management and Implementation: The cloth guides will be distributed to local health workers, and they will be provided with a short training on the purpose for the guides. The use and implementation of the guides will be conducted by the health workers.
Programme Monitoring and Evaluation: Health workers will monitor and evaluate mothers' reactions to the guides, how well the guides encourage discussion, and eventually how well mothers are retaining information taught through this device. They will also monitor and evaluate the durability of the guides, and other practical issues associated with the effectiveness of the guides.
