Analysis | THREE

My decision to take the health issue of Anaemia

• After all the data had been collected I realised the major issues affecting this population of women were: menstrual hygiene, reproductive health, anaemia and sexual health.
• Having looked at a fair amount of case studies that were designed directly for this target audience, this seemed to be the most ignored issue (see below), and yet its repercussions were felt on basic well-being and reproductive health. Small simple changes in lifestyle to get rid of anaemia could bring an allover positive outcome on a slum-dwelling woman's life.

Inferences from data collected--

• Anaemia, in most of the case studies collected that deal directly with the target audience, is most often clubbed with another health concern like pregnancy, menarchy or nutrition (except in the case of Sanchetna). It does not stand out enough as a singular issue for women even though it affects them for a major portion of their lives, because they suffer blood loss throughout their reproductive life: during menarchy, pregnancy and menopause.
• Since symptoms of Anaemia are very generic and can often be misconstrued for general weakness, most women in this income bracket do the same and have practically no awareness on the issue (ignorance about Anaemia).
• The government has no means as yet, of promoting the free IFA tablets they provide to curb anaemia to those who cannot afford to pay for them.
• The government gives no information on side-effects, or on what foods aid/hamper absorption of iron so that the tablets work efficiently.
• Once the woman procures the free IFA tabs, she can forget to take them, or to take them properly and does not know how to check on her progress with them as she is unaware of her symptoms.