Reproductive Health
Life Skills Program
Research and Innovative program of Life Skills that has integrated Comprehensive sexual education (CSE) as part of holistic development package. Other components of the package are adult education, vocational trainings, mental health, physical health
Helplife program on Menstrual Health in 2015-2016, a project sponsored and mentored by Social Venture Partners (SVP) and supported by Gits Food Products Pvt Ltd. Entitled, “A
Happier Menses: Sanitary Napkins Manufacturing Unit”. The objective of the project was the provision of low cost, bio-degradable sanitary pads to the community.
The project aimed to provide a livelihood to underprivileged women, through being employed to make low-cost sanitary pads. The production unit was set up to enable them to produce these bio-degradable sanitary napkins in a sustainable manner. Fourteen women from low socio-economic strata of society were employed in Pune, after training and counselling them for the job.
This project impacted the lives of the twelve women, who would otherwise have not been employed due to their illiteracy, family issues – and also addressed the reproductive health needs of women and adolescent girls who because of wrongful menstrual practices suffered from reproductive tract infections and often drop out of school.
Key findings of this innovative program
- There is a need for the regular source of income for these underprivileged women
- There is a need for creating awareness of the use of sanitary pads
- Improving living and health conditions of underprivileged women
- There is a need for the provision of low-cost bio-degradable sanitary pads to the community (Eco-friendly).
The research on developing low-cost sanitary napkins is on-going, and evidence is being created on hygiene during menstruation especially for the adolescent girls.
The project supported by Forbes Marshal in the year 2012-13, was to improve the quality of the data Supporting Maternal and Child Healthcare at the Bopkhel Clinic.
The project involved a weekly clinic at Bopkhel, a village near Pune to address the health care needs of the community members manned by an Allopathic doctor and trained social worker.
The Forbes Marshall initiative asked Helplife to conduct clinics at Bopkhel for general health- related issues. We provided medicine as well as counselling to address the common problems for the underprivileged population.
The clinic provided a place where minor ailments and illnesses of the villagers were treated close to the village, to limit the need for them to travel a long distance to the city hospital for minor issues. Forbes Marshall assisted Helplife with this endeavor by financing the supplies needed for data collection, and analysis.
