Community Based Primary Health-Care

Since its inception in 1989 PHIRR’s focus has been on primary health care especially of children and women of reproductive age group. PHIRR has its own network of Community Health Workers (CHWs) in its target areas in various slum areas of Karachi. These trained community health workers regularly visit each household in the area and provide basic health facilities like immunization to women and children, antenatal and postnatal checkups at their doorsteps. Those in need of treatment are referred to PHIRR’s health facility, where doctors examine them and provide free of cost treatment. These CHWs are trained in following:

  1. Immunization / Vaccination
  2. unization / Vaccination
  3. Diarrhea
  4. Acute Respiratory Infections
  5. Family Planning
  6. Antenatal And Postnatal Care
  7. Sanitation And Personnel Hygiene
  8. Child Development and Growth Monitoring Skills
  9. Nutrition
  10. Infant and young child nutrition (IYCF)
  11. Maternal Nutrition
  12. IMNCI
  13. Communication Skills
  14. Record Keeping
  15. Care Of Newborn

The residents are very happy to receive quality medical services in their locality in addition to the fact that the project has provided jobs to several women in the community. The rate of immunization, initially around 20%, has increased to more than 95%, and an increasing number of women are coming for antenatal checkups and to avail family planning services. In 2012, 3528 antenatal checkups were done at home 1004 post natal checkups were performed. Reproductive health and child spacing through mother support groups

Presently 1,703 mother support groups exists; 50% of married couples actively practice family planning in target areas and the birth rate in its target areas is significantly below national levels.

 

Health Education

Health education is provided through women support groups and at MCH Centres. Every year approximately 67,527 women and household care takers are provided health education through community health workers.

 

Nutrition

Regular female and adolescent nutrition counseling is done through mother support groups and at the MCH centers. Growth monitoring of children below 5 years of age is carried out regularly. As a result 91% of children in these low-income areas have normal growth parameters which are much better than national or provincial standards

Leave a comment