Expected Results

Activities

To develop and sustain improvements in health, nutrition and sanitation, particularly among women and children

The main output for this sector will be an overall increase of health of the Palasi people that can prove sustainable, with an emphasis on women and children. The outputs leading to this will include trained health workers (local), minor schemes in regard to hygiene and nutrition.

Raised awareness will also be a non-tangible output that will aim to make physical inputs sustainable after the project lifetime.

The first initial and important output will be a comprehensive Baseline PRA conducted during the Year 2. This will give an overall view if the situation of the Palasi people in regard to their diet, health and capacity to improve their situation through training, awareness and the other project interventions.

Some of the physical outputs under this sector will include introduction of smoke-free Chollah’s and construction of common latrines in most of the villages by the end of the project lifetime. A total of 4 mobile clinics will be initiated over 4 years and will serve as the project’s link to the community in addressing health issues in the valley.

The ultimate output of this sector will be decreased ailments, diseases and hopefully infant-mortality in the valley. There should also be a decrease in expenditure on health related (especially treatment related) expenses by local households, therefore allowing those resources to be spent on other things.

Female Health Workers and Child Care Centres: One or two mothers - of Shin and other groups - from each village will be trained as Health Workers, to provide assistance in basic health, nutrition and sanitation, particularly for women and children. Older women will be trained as traditional birth attendants. Each village will construct a Child Care Centre, to include simple demonstration hygiene and sanitation facilities (including latrine, smoke-free chollah and adequate ventilation and sunlight). The PCDP will provide a grant for first aid and safe delivery facilities, and a nominal stipend for one year, during which period the Health Worker can establish herself; she will charge fees according to rates fixed locally, and the purchase of medicines, vaccines, etc., will be through a revolving fund.

Awareness programmes and demonstrations of simple precautions and technologies will address: clean drinking water supplies; use of low-cost latrines; reducing damp, increasing light and reducing smoke through better household ventilation and use of smoke-free chollahs; prevention of skin infections, pest infestations, and burns.

Periodic mobile clinics will provide more professional health care, and will be linked to the existing immunization programme (EIP).