Project Ujjwal - Doctor Speaks

The ‘Improved Family Planning (FP) and Reproductive Health (RH) Services in India” (Project Ujjwal) is a part of the UKaid Framework for Results to improve reproductive, maternal and newborn health in the developing world.

The project aims to reduce maternal deaths from unwanted pregnancies by increasing use of family planning (FP) methods, improving birth spacing practices and preventing unsafe abortions in Bihar and Odisha, focusing on expanding the use of long-term reversible methods/ modern spacing methods such as intrauterine devices (IUCD) and injectable while offering the entire basket of FP services and products.

Four quadrants of information sources were identified – Doctors, Frontline workers, Mass media and Family & Friends who are generally relied upon for accessing information used for decision making related to adoption of FP behaviours. The information needs for decision making on family planning were matched with the credible information sources accessed by eligible couples for decision making. A 360 degree persuasive messaging package is being developed using the credible sources and matching the source to the required information / persuasion.

In order to empower the Smart Health Worker, the project plans to strengthen their capacity by providing them with audiovisual aids that they can use while counseling couples. These audiovisual clips will have eminent doctors from Bihar and Odisha talking about the various methods.

These clips will be loaded on the mobile phones of the health workers who will have the option to use them for one-on-one sessions with couples. The couples in turn will get the opportunity to listen to their local doctor and get relevant information on family planning “from the technical expert”.  These audiovisual capsules will also be adapted for telecast on local cable channels, screened during entertainment education shows through mobile units and may be used at community meetings.