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    An Asset-Focused Health Needs Assessment in a Rural Community in North India
    (Asia-Pac. J. Public Health, 2015) Kaaren R. Mathias; Joseph M. P. Mathias; Philip C. Hill
    Introduction. Health needs assessment (HNA) targets health resources to needs yet is rarely used in low-resource contexts such as the Indian villages. Methods. The authors combined rapid participatory appraisal (RPA) and HNA tools into 4 steps: (a) define HNA parameters, objectives, and community; (b) describe community demographics, health status, felt needs, assets, and health services; (c) analysis; and (d) design interventions considering felt needs, assets, impact potential, and organizational resources. Results. Community felt needs focused on lack of access to personal health services. Major morbidities included respiratory and diarrheal disease and maternal/child health problems. Formal anthropometry revealed high prevalence of underweight and stunting. Community assets included high land ownership, educated unmarried women, and operational government services. Conclusions. In low-resource developing country contexts with poor information systems, HNA is possible and useful. Including RPA and community participation to also assess assets resulted in programs responding to communities' needs using existing resources.
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    Addressing adolescent anaemia in vulnerable urban Indian communities: A qualitative exploration
    (Health Educ. J., 2021) Vinita Ajgaonkar; Nikhat Shaikh; Rama Shyam; Neeta Karandikar; Pallavi Patni; Sheetal Rajan; Anuja Jayaraman
    Objective: Anaemia is a health problem for adolescents in India. This paper examines the nuanced transformations triggered by a multi-pronged, community-based anaemia intervention with adolescents and their families, seeking meaningful insights for future nutrition and anaemia programmes. Design: Qualitative study rooted in critical theory. Setting: Three slum communities - Dharavi and Kandivali (in Mumbai) and Kalwa (in Thane) in Maharashtra, India. Methods: Data were collected through focus-group discussions and in-depth interviews with young people, parents and other stakeholders. Content analysis of drawings of a nutritious food plate by participants supplemented discussion and interview data. Thematic analysis was undertaken manually using a grounded theory approach. Findings: Nutrition education with adolescents and parents led to reduced junk food consumption although reinforcement of the information provided was necessary to sustain the change. Parental support was a crucial factor in ensuring anaemia treatment compliance but was affected by a lack of awareness regarding the consequences of anaemia and the nutritional requirements of anaemic adolescents. Other factors, including the pampering of boys, the neglect of girls and the heavy workload of mothers influenced treatment compliance. Awareness and agency among adolescents contributed to a supportive environment in terms of raised consciousness and better sanitation within families and the community. Conclusion: Findings highlight the need for a holistic approach to address anaemia among young people. While nutrition and health education are important to address treatment noncompliance, this approach should also focus on factors such as socioeconomic status, gender equity, health prioritisation, family involvement and engaging young people as agents of change to promote an enabling environment.