Delhi has an
adolescent Population of nearly 35.0 Lac which is nearly 21% of its entire
population. This represents a huge opportunity that can transform the social
and economic fortunes of the State if substantial investments in their
education, health and development are made.
As a part of
strategy to address the health & development needs of adolescents a
strategy in the form of Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram (RKSK) has been
adopted in Delhi. RKSK is a strategy based on a continuum of care for
adolescent health & development needs, including the provision of information,
commodities and services through various Adolescent Friendly Health Clinics (AFHCs)
and also at the community level. It aims to provide an amalgamation of
Preventive, Promotive, Curative, Counseling & Referral services to the
adolescents.
Under
Facility based component AFHCs
in the form of “DISHA-
Delhi Initiative for Safeguarding Health of Adolescents” Clinics
have been established in nearly 20 facilities in Northeast & Northwest
District and they are being further strengthened to provide Adolescent friendly
services.
Outreach Component has 4 activities-
1.
Weekly Iron &
Folic Acid Supplementation Program
2. Peer Education program
3. Adolescent Health Day &
4. Menstrual Hygiene Scheme
Anemia a manifestation of under
nutrition and poor dietary intake of Iron is a serious health problem not only
among pregnant women but among infants, young children and adolescents. Over
30% of adolescent boys & nearly 50% adolescent girls in Delhi are anemic, which
can result in impaired physical growth, poor cognitive development, reduced
physical fitness & work performance.
Adolescents are the future parents and
anemia among them may have a catastrophic effect on their health when they
become mothers and the health & development of the new born.
Based on the evidence
that demonstrates that regular consumption of Iron & Folic Acid (IFA) is
effective in reducing the incidence of anemia, Weekly
Iron & Folic Acid Supplementation (WIFS) Program was launched in Delhi in
July, 2013.
WIFS Program is being implemented
through Govt./Govt. aided Schools under the Directorate of Education as well as
through Anganwadi Centres under the Deptt. of Women & Child Development in
Delhi wherein IFA supplement in the form of “BLUE” tablet is administered to
adolescent girls & boys on each Wednesday throughout the year.
Directorate
of Family Welfare is the Nodal Department entrusted with overseeing the
implementation of WIFS Program in Delhi.
As per reports received -the number of
Adolescents taking IFA Tablets on each Wednesday is quite low with average
compliance reported being nearly 17% in schools and 30% in Anganwadi Centers
during the last financial year 2015-16.
The program
has seen an upward trend during the C.F.Y.2016-17 and is depicted below:
As a part of Anemia Prevention &
Control strategy, during National De-worming Day (NDD) on 10th
February,2016 over 30.50 Lac children were administered de-worming drug at
Schools and Anganwadi Centres. For the first time Private schools were made a
part of the campaign.
NDD,2017 was held on 9th
February,2017 followed by mop up day on 15th February. Nearly 31.21
Lac children & adolescents have been administered Albendazole at the level
of 10897 Anganwadi Centers and 3342 Govt./Govt. aided schools as well as 605 private schools across the State.
Peer Education
Program is based on the basic premise that Young People
are much more likely to be receptive to information communicated by their
peers, and would also be more likely to change their behavior if peers they
trusted advocate the change. A “Peer Educator” is someone who belongs to the
same social group, sharing one or more social or demographic characteristics
such as – Age or Education. Role of a
Peer Educator can be varied- from information sharing through distribution of
appropriate materials, to ‘Peer Education’ which involves sessions aimed at
supporting young people to build their knowledge , aptitude & skills and
finally, to provide counseling or intensive psychological support through
trained counselors.
The
activity is being rolled out with Master Trainers at State & District level
already trained.150 Peer Educators have already been identified. One batch of
Peer educators have already been trained in Northeast district while training
of two batches is underway in Northwest district. By the mid of F.Y.2017-18 500
Peer Educators are planned to be trained and inducted into the system for
outreach.
To
facilitate the training, increasing the knowledge base and conduct
participatory sessions with fellow adolescents by Peer Educators, Peer educator Kits have been printed at
the State level and have been made available to the RKSK Districts (Northeast
& Northwest).
Adolescent Health
Day (AHD) is a quarterly activity and is being planned for
last week of April, 2017. The objective of organization of AHDs are to- Improve
Coverage with active involvement of Adolescents, Increase awareness among
parents & other key stakeholders on
adolescent health needs & Increase
awareness among adolescents about the determinants of adolescent health such as
Nutrition, SRH, Substance Misuse, NCDs, Mental Health& Violence (including
GBV).
Menstrual Hygiene
Scheme aims to increase
awareness among adolescent girls on Menstrual Hygiene, ensure increased/easier
access to and use of High Quality Sanitary Napkins, To ensure safe disposal of
sanitary Napkins in an environment friendly manner. The scheme is to be rolled
out in the F.Y. 2017-18
UHND as a Platform: UHNDs are being utilized as a platform to engage
with adolescents. Focus is to utilize optimally and effectively, the platform
provided by Outreach services/UHND’s for demand generation on
Adolescent health issues/ selection of Peer Educators.
IEC/BCC
Activities: Activities to increase awareness about
adolescent health & development issues and to dispel various myths and
misconceptions regarding various issues particularly related to Sexual &
Reproductive Health, Sexuality, and Menstruation etc. apart from various
important adolescent issues plaguing the State in particular Teenage Marriage
& Pregnancy besides the increasingly relevant issue of Anemia and
malnutrition are being undertaken.
“RKSK is not a health initiative
alone, it is a nation-building programme. It is not a disease-response agenda,
it is a life-enhancing agenda. It is not necessary, it is essential. It is not
about justice alone, it is about dignity. It is not just about dignity, it is
about Humanity.”
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