Health Programmes

Women’s Health Programmes

Women’s health in rural Rajasthan is widely neglected leading to high rates of miscarriages, risks in childbirth and premature infant mortal deaths. The area has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in India and the world with 558 deaths per 100,000 births. Over 50% women are anaemic. Over 50% children are malnourished.
These problems are due to absence of clean water and the lack of health facilities in this remote area where not a single woman doctor is located. Also rural women suffer from severe malnutrition as men are more privileged in all household activities and are given better food and medical care.
Wells for India provides funds for a range of programmes aimed at particularly improving the health of women and children.

Nutritional Supplements

Women's health is widely neglected, leading to high risk pregnancies, high rates of miscarriage, premature infant deaths, and high risk at childbirth. Women suffer from anaemia and susceptibility to disease. New-born children are weak due to lack of calcium and other minerals.

Wells for India funds a mother and baby Nutritional Support Project which gives women supplementary food from month 5/6 of their pregnancy until 3/6 months after delivery, a total of 6-9 months. Every month the women are given half a litre of edible oil, 4 kilos porridge, 0.5 kilos of pulses and 1 kilo of jaggery (molasses).

Mothers in the project say they have more energy, and that the monotony of their diet has been broken. Deliveries were easier and the children are born healthier.

Health Workers

Village Health Workers are trained and given the following equipment:

- Foetal stethoscope and mucus aspirator for maternity care
- Scissors and dressings for umbilical cord
- Assortment of packed bandages and dressings
- Packets of contraceptives with iron supplements
- Simple analgesics and anti protozoal medication
- A record book

Read a paper by Evelyn Harvey on Health in rural Rajasthan