Coverage 32 villages near Sitakund covering more than 53,000 people. Main clinic based in Sitakund.

Duration Since 1995

Goals

The SHAPLA program wishes to ensure greater access to health facilities and to improve the overall health of children, women and men in this area. More specifically, the program hopes to reduce the maternal and child mortality rates and to provide family planning services.

Activities

YPSA set up satellite clinics and community clinics to complement the services provided at the main clinic in Sitakund. Besides general health care, these clinics offer family planning services by distributing contraception and disseminating information. YPSA also implemented community monitoring systems to increase the local community's awareness of their needs and concerns. To make health facilities more accessible to disadvantaged groups, the SHAPLA programme is working hand in hand with the Micro Health Insurance for Rural Poor Women in Bangladesh (MHIB).

People still often turn to traditional healers and make a low use of modern health facilities. Investment in health infrastructures with modern equipment is not the only way to increase the use of facilities; it is important to encourage people to seek treatment at those centres. YPSA will also try to strenghten its activities by demystifying common beliefs.