Family & Community Health (FCH)

National Consultation on Adolescent Health

9 May 2006, Hotel Ashok, New Delhi

Government of India launches Implementation Package for Adolescent Friendly Reproductive and Sexual Health Services under NRHM / RCH II

A National Consultation on Adolescent Health was organized on 9 May 2006 at New Delhi by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, WHO and UNFPA to release the Implementation Guide and Training Package for adolescent health services under NRHM / RCH II. More than 150 people participated in the consultation – these included officials from the Government of India, health officials from the State Governments and experts from NGOs working with adolescents, professional bodies (IAP, FOGSI, IMA), UN agencies and other experts in their individual capacity.

The National RCH Phase II is one of the key programmes under the umbrella of NRHM. It addresses issues of high fertility rate, maternal mortality and infant mortality rates. The Adolescent Reproductive and Sexual Health (ARSH) strategy under RCH-II addresses the large under-served adolescent population and focuses on reorganizing the existing public health system in order to meet their service needs. Many States have indicated implementation of Adolescent Services in their PIPs. A national consultation was organized from 2 to 5 September 2005 to discuss and develop the operational guidelines, particularly in terms of components relating to training, service delivery, communication, quality standards and monitoring. Operational guidelines for implementation have since been finalized and presented as the ‘Implementation Guide’ that will guide state and district programme managers to implement the adolescent friendly health services within the public health care system. Alongside, training packages for Medical Officers and LHVs / ANMs have also been finalized.

Mr Prasanna Hota, Union Secretary for Health and Family Welfare, delivered the key-note address at the consultation and released the Implementation Guide and the Training Manuals for adolescent health services. Mr B.P. Sharma, Joint Secretary; Dr Paramita Sudharto, Acting WHO Representative to India; and Ms Sharareh Amirkhalili, Deputy Representative, UNFPA were also present. The Secretary invited Dr Sraoj Pachauri, Country Representative Population Council to share the honours. In her inaugural address, Dr. Paramita Sudharto highlighted the contribution made by WHO in the development of this work. She congratulated the Government of India for having achieved so much and conveyed her best wishes for the successful implementation of the ARSH strategy in the country.

During the technical sessions that followed, a brief mandate provided under NRHM and RCH II as well as details of Implementation Guide and Training Plan were shared with the participants. State Health Officials from Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh presented the state plans for implementing ARSH strategy under RCH II. All the participants received a set of documents released by the Secretary (Health & Family Welfare).