Karnataka Health Promotion Trust

Innovations

Rakshaka : The Condom Campaign
Worldwide, the Prevention of HIV adopts two core strategies; the treatment of curable sexually transmitted infections (STI) promptly, correctly and completely and the correct and consistent use of condoms for every risky sexual contact. While quality services for STI, focused especially on key populations such as sex workers, sexual minorities and their clients has been proved to reduce the incidence of HIV, condom usage is perhaps the most effective method that can prevent STI and HIV among key and other populations.

With this in mind, "Rakshaka - the condom campaign" was launched in September this year to galvanise, streamline and strengthen condom programming within 15 districts in Karnataka to fulfill the objectives of increasing the availability of and access to condoms, for sex workers (and clients); increasing the visibility of condoms and promoting messages on the multiple uses of condoms in relation to health; promoting correct and consistent use of condoms among sex workers (and clients) and increasing the condom negotiation skills of sex workers.

Namma Clinic campaign
The "Our Clinic" campaign was initiated as a response to community testimonials regarding clinic services and as a way to promote the attainment of program objectives. It was aim of the campaign to address the issues of: quality medicine, treatment after examination, confidentiality, not only medicine-medicine with love, treatment-not only for us even for our kids and to our partners, free of cost, and no need to wait in queue.

Campaign strategy
Program organizers intended to make the "Our Clinic" campaign not just a drive to get more people into clinics, but a lively and fun program that engaged the community with clinical services. The actual campaign design was flexible and left open to the implementing NGOs. Some suggestions for mobilizing the community were to visit one spot every day and fix a target of community members to meet on that particular day. Another suggestion was to invite the community for an opening ceremony on Independence Day and a concluding ceremony on Gandhi Jayanthi. Recommended activities were cultural programs, lucky draw, beauty tip camps, and games and competitions for children and other community members. In addition, the NGO could also distribute a small pocket calendar. To pull more people into the clinic one suggestion was that NGOs develop a system of accrual points and rewards to peers and outreach workers for bringing in FSWs, MSM and partners for treatment.

KHPT provided several materials for the campaign. These included: simple visual hanging material on different issues covered in the campaign, simple folder regarding what is our clinic, our clinic stickers and a strategy paper for implementers.

Naavu Nammavaru- A campaign by the SM community
In recent deliberations with regard to the MSM intervention, it as been noticed that the reach of the project has not met the target and the number of community members accessing services is not as per estimation. Out of the 16, 209 estimated, 14602 have been registered. The regular monthly contact is around 59 % of the estimated. And only 18% of the estimated have visited clinics on a monthly basis between April 2008 and January 2009. 38% of the estimated is the percentage of the overall clinic visits in 2008-09.

Thus, the campaign, Naavu Nammavaru was conceptualized and launched. Several individuals from the community and staff came together and have engaged in a rigorous planning and preparation process to ensure that the campaign gains momentum and success in all the districts. Suresh Chitrapu has led the way with several other members from the community and resource teams joining hands to ensure that the campaign will strengthen the existing intervention and bring about a perceivable attitudinal change amongst the non community and community members as well.

Objectives of the campaign :

Focus messages :