Health and Hygiene

Healthcare for all, focusing on preventive, diverse systems of health and medicine

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This section features stories of initiatives ensuring healthcare for all. These are based on approaches that help prevent ill-health in the first place, including the provision of nutritional food, enabling an environment that is healthy, and so on. They include ensuring access to curative facilities to those who have conventionally not had such access. And they have stories of synergizing various health systems, traditional and modern, bringing back into popular use the diverse systems from India and outside including indigenous/folk medicine, nature cure, Ayurvedic, Unani and other such systems, and other holistic or integrative approaches. Community-based management and control of healthcare and hygiene, and ensuring accountability of the state’s responsibility towards citizens in health, would be part of the stories featured here.

A pumpkin for the doctor

In the small Ayurvedic clinic of Dr. Suvinay Damle in Kudal, Pumpkins, Coconuts and Gourds jostle for space with bottled medicinal concoctions. The farm produce is what Damle gets as his consultation fee.

LOCOST: bringing medicines within the common man’s reach

Medicines make up 50-60% of healthcare costs in India, and they are unaffordable for most. About 2 lakh people fall below the poverty line every year due to one health shock, and the biggest expense here usually turns out to be medicine. LOCOST is a collective effort initiative of like-minded people, many of whom were doctors practicing community medicine in remote rural areas.

Zero-Waste Community Emerges out of Grassroots Movements

A small-town anti-incinerator effort in Kerala grows into a statewide zero-waste program.

Disposable pads, disposable lives

Do I, a woman, who disposes non-degradable sanitary napkins directly affect public health? Yes, I do! Find out how and take a pledge to solve the problem.

Making Hand-Washing a Happy Hygiene Habit

To fight the threat of infectious diseases like diarrhea, Grampari has launched an innovative program for rural children, teaching them how to make hand washing a habit by putting themin charge and making it hands-on and fun!

There is a Cure

Chittorgarh shows the way to affordable healthcare - generic drugs at cost price.

Decentralising ration procurement in Odisha’s anganwadis

“Earlier there was delay in delivery of ration and rice near us. We could hardly give some lentils and rice to the children. However with money coming directly to our hands, we are trying to give best to the children,” says an anganwadi worker in Nuapada district.

Swasthya Swara : A Unique Community Health Solution

Swasthya Swara (Health Swara) plans to address rural community health issues through the use of mobile phones, and at the same time help in protection and distribution of ancient knowledge that the Vaids and other traditional practitioners possess, which is in danger of vanishing forever

The Grassroots Lokpal

How beneficiary-led monitoring of government-run services, such as ration shops and rural healthcare, functions in a few states.