219585 “Dojiya”: An assessment of Nepal's first radio drama series on safe abortion

Monday, November 8, 2010 : 1:10 PM - 1:30 PM

Kathryn Andersen, PhD , Ipas, Chapel Hill, NC
Anuja Singh , Ipas Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal
Ghazaleh Samandari, PhD , Department of Maternal and Child Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC
Leila Hessini , Ipas, Chapel Hill, NC
Nepal's National Abortion Policy (2002) ensures access to affordable safe abortion services to all Nepali women; despite subsequent improvements in abortion service availability, recent studies show a dearth in knowledge of abortion services. In response, the government developed a communication plan, including development of a radio drama series on reproductive health and abortion topics. Dojiya, the resulting 26 episode serial radio drama on safe, legal, induced abortion, was designed to: (1) ensure that communities understand the current abortion law; (2) educate listeners about where they can access safe abortion services; and (3) reduce the social stigma associated with abortion. Six focus groups were conducted to gauge participant impressions, knowledge and attitudes towards abortion following exposure to Dojiya. In addition, eight in-depth interviews were conducted with key informants involved in reproductive health program development. Finally, letters from listeners were reviewed for comments that illustrated themes that emerged from the focus group discussions and in-depth interviews. Overall findings were positive; many participants had favorable responses to the program messages in the show and reported improved knowledge of abortion and reproductive health related issues. In some cases the program not only improved knowledge, but also engendered positive changes in health behavior. Furthermore, listeners thought the radio drama format delivered important health communication through a medium that is clear, easy to understand and entertaining. This presentation will describe the development and implementation of the radio broadcast, and present the findings of the post-broadcast qualitative evaluation.

Learning Areas:
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs

Learning Objectives:
Describe implementation and evaluation of Dojiya, the 26 episode radio program designed for community education about safe, legal, induced abortion in Nepal Identify themes that emerged from focus groups and in-depth interviews on the successes and challenges of the program

Keywords: Abortion, Community Education

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I participated with the team in evaluation design and write-up
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 3236.0: Abortion and stigma