- Teacher: Priyanka Dixit
- Teacher: Shubhada Maitra
- Teacher: Smitha Nair
- Teacher: Shubhada Maitra
- Teacher: Smitha Nair
- Teacher: Jennifer Kipgen
- Teacher: Smitha Nair
- Teacher: Ashabanu Soletti
Social Action and Advocacy in the field of Health
Rationale: Health for a long time has been viewed as a personal issue - something that has been influenced by personal behaviour, habits, lifestyle, etc. Health work therefore has traditionally been considered an area of social service, of charitable work and there have been many philantropic, charitable hospitals and programmes serving the poor . However, historical experience and scientific evidence shows that the health of communties and populations are influenced by factors which operate at a level broader than personal - even beyond what are defined as social determinants of health like nutrition, sanitation and environment. The availability of medical care, prices and policies related to essential drugs, socially prevalent concepts of health also have a bearing on people's health.
In India more than 10 million people in India are pushed below poverty line because of unaffordable health care expenditure on account of hospitalization. Sub standard and costly health care characterize the private sector and the lack of good quality, accessible care are major weaknesses of the public health care system Over the years, the emerging political economy of life and health has seen profit emerge as its prime mover and driving force, with the consequence that research in the life and biomedical sciences, the delivery of health care and health care itself over time become increasingly subordinated to private interest. New markets and new (private) forms of organizations of the delivery of health services have turned health care into a highly profitable logic and privitization of health care or private management of public health services is an overpowering reality.
Those who oppose the dominant power structures find similar hegemonic forces operate in the health sphere too - medical profession, drug industry, health bureaucracy. The convential system perpetuate an ideology of victim - blaming on technocratic, top down solutions which exclude many and take away their agency.To decisively improve the health of communties, the appropriate approach would be to address these issues through collective action to further the the goal of making conditions more conducive to health. Health as a right has to be made a relevant issue and integrated with other issues on the social agenda and other human rights...
Learner objectives : At the end of the course the students will
develop a critical understanding of the right to health and health care
develop an understanding of concepts, principles, strategies, tactics related to social action and their application to the field of health
be able to critically examine certain health movements / advocacy efforts in relation to their contexts, debates, stakeholders , strategies, successes, limitations and failures.
develop basic skills on how to design an advocacy project, prepare a media brief, how to use constitutional, legal frameworks and international instruments for advocacy, analyse health budgets, design and implement an advocacy intiative in the field of health.
Methodology
Lectures
Readings and discussion
Mini skill workshops
Films
Assignment 1- (50%) RTI
Developing a Media Brief
Assignment 2: (50%) A critique of the Draft Health Policy 2015 to be send to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Course Schedule
Session No. |
Date |
Time |
Title |
Facilitator |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
June 18, 2015 |
2-4pm |
Introduction to the Course
Establishing a contract
|
Brinelle D'souza |
2 |
June 25 , 2015 |
2- 5pm |
Social Action - Concept, Principles , strategies, tactics and models and their application to the field of health |
Brinelle D'souza
|
3 |
July 2, 2014 |
2-5pm |
The Right to Health and Health Care |
Brinelle Dsouza |
4 |
July 9, 2015 |
2-5pm |
Social Movements and Health Movements
The Jan Swasthya Abhiyan |
Brinelle Ds'ouza |
5 |
July 16, 2015 |
2- 5pm
|
The struggle against decriminalization - LGBT movement and section 377 |
Ashok Row Kavi/ Chayanika Shah/ Ketki Ranade |
6 |
July 23, 2015 |
2- 5pm |
Patents , FTAs and Access to Medicines
|
Leena/Kajal Bharadwaj Meghaney |
7 |
July 30, 2015 |
2-5pm |
Role of Media in Social Action and Advocacy - A workshop |
Yogesh Pawar |
8 |
August 6, 2015 |
2- 5pm |
Unravelling budgets for advocacy
|
Ravi Duggal |
9 |
August 13 , 2014 |
2- 5pm |
Mental Health Activism in India |
Ketki Ranade |
10 |
August 20, 2015 |
2-6pm |
Right to Information Act 2005
Designing an Advocacy Project
|
Brinelle D'souza |
11 |
TBD |
|
The WHO Watch |
David Legge, La Trobbe University through Skype |
Reading material: The articles being given to you for each class comprise the essential readings
Methodology
-
Lectures
-
Readings and discussion
-
Mini skill workshops
-
Films
- Teacher: Brinelle Dsouza
Lecture No. |
Title |
Hours |
Date |
1 |
|
4 |
23rd June |
2 |
The Making of Health Policy - Process, Politics and Power Part II |
4 |
30th June |
3 |
A Review of Health Policy Making in India - context and processes |
4 |
7th July |
4 |
National Health Policy 1984, National Health Policy 2002, National Health Bill – 2009 |
4 |
14th July |
5 |
NRHM, NUHM National Population Policy |
4 |
21st July |
6 |
Health Financing in India |
4 |
28th July |
7 |
Impact of international health policies and aid paradigm on domestic health policies |
4 |
4th August |
8 |
National Pharmaceutical Policy |
4 |
11th August |
9 |
Gender , Health Policy and Legislation |
4 |
18th August |
- Teacher: Brinelle Dsouza
Course Summary
Theories of Communication and Application in the Field of Health is a 2 credit course. The course aims to teach students theories widely used in health communication and its application in the field of public health. In addition to learning about some of the predominant behavior and cognitive theories, the course will also bring in alternate frameworks used in community settings to empower, educate, disseminate, change and inform health behaviors.
Course Objectives
1. Develop an understanding on some of the widely used theories, models, and concepts in the field of health communication
2. Learn the application of the communication theories to educate, empower, disseminate, change and inform health behaviors and direct effective health policies and programsÂ
3. Learn strategies for designing effective health communication messages
4. Learn the role of health communication in reducing health disparities and increasing accessibility and affordability of health care and services
5. Learn the steps of designing an effective communication strategy. Students may want to refer to the workshop conducted on designing effective health interventions as a prelude to this class
We will use a variety of instructional methods to address these objectives, including lectures, class presentations, videos etc. The success of the course will depend heavily upon active participation by the students, so you are strongly encouraged to feel free to present your ideas and to listen respectfully to the ideas of others.
- Teacher: Lata Das