Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Millennium Development Goals

It is matter of time to reach the goal .There are eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)-which rang from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing primary education, with in 2015 all over the world. It is not possible to establish the goal overnight.

So it is time consuming matter.

Eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are:

1. Eradicate extreme probity and hunger –
By reducing half of the population who are earning less than one dollar in a day.
2. Achieve universal primary education-
Ensuring primary education to the children’s.
3. Promote gender equality and empower woman -
4. Reduce child mortality-
Reduce two thirds the mortality rate among children under five
5. Improving maternal health
6. combat HIV and AIDS malaria and other diseases-
Stop spread of HIV/AIDS
7. Ensuring environmental sustainability-
Achieving significant improvement in lives of at last 100 million slum dwellers with in 2020
8. Develop a global partnership for development -
· Providing essential drug to the developing countries
· Sharing technology among the countries.

The Role of Health Communication in Achieving Global TB Control targets

What is Health Communication?


This is primarily concerned with the role of communication theory, research and practice in health promotion and health care.


The Role of Health Communication in Achieving Global TB Control program:


When developing a TB control program, here are 12 lessons to keep in mind for success:

The political commitment is essential, especially when combined with increased resourced.
The clinical aspects of the program-including diagnostic services, drug supplies and patient supervision- must be in place and functioning before large-scale communication activities begin.
Communication activities are most effective when they are integrated into all program activities at all levels.
Formative research can unlock key communication challenges.
Training of TB control program personnel, especially front-line workers, in interpersonal communication and counseling skills as part of the overall communication program is critical.
Communication programs are more effective when consistent messages are conveyed through a mix of communication channels.
Communities and local health care providers, including private practitioners, are important players in the TB control program.
Partnerships are necessary at all levels. Everyone has o role to play in TB control.
Make sure everyone knows the goal and is motivated to work towards it.
Public events are an effective way to reach large numbers of people and create awareness about the program.
Build on programs strengths, be proactive, and maintain flexibility.An effective program needs a system to monitor, evaluate and measure progress towards the goal and to communicate results to all levels.

Behavior Change Communication

BCC is a process of working with individuals, communities and societies to develop communication strategies to promote positive behaviors which are appropriate to their setting.

Role of BCC:

Increase Knowledge
Stimulate Community Dialogue
Promote essential attitude change
Reduce stigma and discrimination
Create a demand for information and service
Advocate
Promote services for prevention, care and support.
Improve skills and sense of self-efficacy.


Increasing the practice of hand wash with ash/ soap before having food and after toilet:

BCC Strategy development and planning:

Steps in developing a behavior change communication strategy
State program goal
Involve stakeholder
Indentify target populations
Conduct formative BCC assessments
Segment target populations
Definition behavior change objective
Design BCC strategy and M (Monitor) and E (Evaluation) plan
Develop communication products
Pre-test
Implement and monitor
Evaluation
Analyze feedback and revision.

Social Marketing

Social Marketing is a communication approach, is the systematic application of marketing along with other concepts and techniques to achieve specific behavioral goals for the social good, and seeks to make health-related information, products and services easily available and affordable to low-income populations and those at risk while at the same time promoting the adaption of healthier behavior.


Social Marketing can be applied to promote:


· Merit goods.
· Make the society avoid demerit goods and
· Considers society well being as a whole.


Social Marketing is being described as having two parents:


A Social Parent=Social science and social policy and a marketing parent= Commercial and public sector marketing approaches.


Different Approaches/models to social marketing:


Community-based systems of product promotion and distribution approach.
An innovative and promising variant of the CBD approach.
The manufacturer’s model
The targeted service delivery approach.


The four ‘P’s of Social Marketing:


With each social marketing program, the concept of a target population is constant. They are:


The product being promoted: The product is the knowledge, attitudes or behavior you want to target audience to adopt.


The price: The price is usually something more abstract than money.


The promotion: The promotion is the means for persuading the target audience that the product is worth this price. It may include a publicity campaign through the mass media.


The place or channels were by the information reaches the consumer: The place refers to how the message is disseminated. Channels could include mass media, schools, churches and workplaces etc.


Price is less and benefit is larger.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Project Homecoming

Project Homecoming is a rebuilding effort of The Presbytery of South Louisiana in partnership with Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. They are committed to rebuilding homes devastated by hurricanes Katrina and Rita for those families who are low-income, uninsured, underinsured, disabled, and elderly.With the help of volunteer labor, the make rebuilding affordable for those who would not otherwise be able to return home. The administrative costs are fully funded by Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, so 100% of all donations go directly to building materials, professional services, and furniture for the homes.

What They Do:

Project Homecoming manages reconstruction of homes in greater New Orleans for home owners with verified need. The coordinate, house, and train volunteers from across the country and the world to work on these homes. They also collect donations for unmet needs.

Who They Are:

1. A nonprofit organization with headquarters in New Orleans.
2. Staff of The Presbytery of South Louisiana.
3. Long term and short term volunteers with Presbyterian Disaster Assistance.
4. Long term volunteers through the Young Adult Volunteer program.
5. Long term volunteers through Americorps‘ Louisiana Delta Service Corps program.

What they’ve accomplished:

Since the beginning of 2007, The Presbytery of South Louisiana has:

Housed over 6,500 volunteers.
The volunteers coordinated over 265,000 hours.
Completed work on over 80 homes.
Continued work on over 20 homes.

The history of gating Start:

After hurricane Katrina hit on August 29, 2005, and the flooding due to levee failures abated weeks later, local Presbyterian responders began meeting to determine what to do. With limited communication available, team plans began and PDA had their first meetings in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Emergency supplies, housing, and personnel were linked to Baton Rouge (75 miles from hurricane landfall) and outlying churches for support. Two months after Katrina, hurricane Rita hit the western parishes of Louisiana near the Lake Charles area. Presbyterian churches now had to put a second response plan in effect which was done in the area of the First Presbyterian Church of Thibodaux, which set up food and basic necessities for western parishes. As soon as it was safe to travel in the Katrina-impacted area, First Union Presbyterian Church in Luling set up FISH Camp with temporary housing and food to support the hundreds of volunteers coming in to help. Soon, other Presbyterian churches joined in to offer housing, tools, and protective clothing.Throughout 2005-2006, most of the work involved gutting and removing debris. The work was physically and emotionally taxing for both homeowners and volunteers. Some churches began rebuilding plans late in the year.The rebuilding program breakthrough came when the Project Homecoming organization was formed with the plan to rebuild homes of the neediest who wanted to return. A week long building “blitz” kick started the efforts with training and guidance from Hosanna Industries, Inc. Rebuilding went into full swing with the hiring of construction managers and administrative staff and a case management partnership with Catholic Charities‘Katrina Aid Today program. Long term volunteers were provided through Americorps and PC (USA) Young Adult Volunteers.

Why Help is still needed:

Almost 200,000 homes were destroyed by flooding in the New Orleans area. Eighty percent of the City of New Orleans was flooded. There are uncounted families dispersed across the country wanting to return home.

We have got it from this website:

Sayra Khan, Kazi Rabeya Basri, Mehedur Rahman, Saleh Ahmed.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Media AdvoCacy

What is Media Advocacy?

Media advocacy is the strategic use of news making through TV, radio and newspapers to promote public debate, and generate community support for changes in community norms and policies. Advocating for the goals of safe, healthy and prosperous communities, identifying barriers to strategic policy implementation, and sharing current research through news making all help policy makers and the general public to more fully engage in creating systemic changes that improve the world we live in.
Reference: http://www.publicstrategies.org/ips_media_advocacy_new_02.htm

Media advocacy refers to collaborate with other organization and the massage sent through mass media like Television, radio and newspapers etc and motivate to changed higher-level policies. Media Advocacy does not work in individual level; it works for the mass people. They communicate with the mass people through the mass media. They change policies by motivating the people who are the policy maker. They are not working for individual changing; they are working for the long lasting environmental changing. At the result, by this process there happen a mass changing in the society.

Media Advocacy is part of a strategy to exert pressure on those whose decisions influence that environment, a strategy that uses the mass media appropriately, aggressively and effectively to support the development of healthy public policies.
-Lawrence Wellack

What are the elements of Media Advocacy?

The elements of media advocacy are:

1. The first element of media advocacy is that our goal to create awareness in the society. Because we are the part of the society. We are working for creating awareness in mass people from HIV/AIDS virus. Gradually the people are affected this virus because of unconsciousness. So we are trying to make conscious among the people.

2. The second step is that the target audience. Everyone in the society is the target audience of our project. But most especially target audiences are the young generation who are about to HIV/AIDS virus, sex workers and who are drug addict. They are the main victimized and disseminator of HIV/AIDS virus. And also the pregnant women who are affected with HIV/AIDS virus.

3. Our massage is for mass people to live healthy and safe life from HIV/AIDS virus and our slogan is ‘Bachte Hole Jante Hobe’.

4. The fourth step is to go for the opinion leader, the educated people, religious persons and the health workers in the villages to motivate them and by taking their help we try to create awareness in the society. On the other hand, in the cities, we go for the health ministers, teachers, and health related persons. At last we go for the mass media like.

5. Basically we are trying to create awareness in the mass people. So we should used mass media like television, radio and newspapers. Also publishing posters, leaflets, billboards, calendar, stickers, and festoons, for creating more awareness in the society. We can also arrange seminars, concerts for creating awareness.

What are the things you will keep in your mind when you are planning Media Advocacy?

In every work, planning is very important. I will follow a strategy when I am going to prepare for media advocacy.

First step: Identify the issue:

Creating awareness from dissemination of HIV/AIDS issue could be 'many people affected by this virus because of unconsciousness, physical relation with an HIV/AIDS affected people, blood transaction with used syringe, and also affected women's baby could be affected.

Second step: Identify the policy solution:

For creating awareness, in cities, we need to go for policy maker or health ministry. Firstly we motivate the ministry level. If they permit us then we go for second step.

On the other hand, in villages, we are going to the opinion leader, teachers, and the mollahs (of the mosque), and we are trying to motivate them by interpersonal communication. Because the villagers are not educated so they could not understand. We motivate the village's leader by interpersonal communication.

Third step: Identify who has the power to create and adopt the policy - the primary intended audience(s):

If we need to create awareness in cities, we make a policy like (Bachte Hole Jante Hobe) and the policy will adopt by the policy makers and the health ministry.

On the other hand, in village the policy will adopt by the opinion leaders. The opinion leaders are much believable for the villager people.

Fourth step: Explore who has the power to influence the decision makers - the secondary intended audience(s):

We can also involve with the organization who are related with the health issue, we also can involve with the organization who are related with drug addiction issue because HIV/AIDS spread the people who are drug addict.

The mass media (Television, radio and newspaper) are an important secondary audience in media advocacy efforts. Also the media can be played to create awareness like we publish posters, leaflets, billboards, calendar, stickers, festoons and much commercial advertisement in Mass Media. It can also motivate the mass people and the policy makers.

Fifth step: Research the implementations of adopting or not adopting the policy:

We are going for research after implementation of adopting the policy or not adopting the policy. We find that the policy makers and the ministers are motivated and the general people also adopting the policy.

Sixth step: Research what the intended audiences (primary & secondary) already know and feel about the issue:

After investigation, we see that people aware of this issue. They (audiences) can understand all the facts about the issue. They are supported the policy solution. We understand that people are talking about the problem of HIV/AIDS, people are aware of this, people make physical relation safely by using condom, people use intact syringe while blood transaction, and also the people who are drug addict they also aware of this.

So I think people are getting aware of HIV/AIDS.

Seventh step: Learn about the different ways to access the types of mass media that the intended audience(s) attends to:

The people who can afford television and radio so they see the commercial advertisement over there they are getting aware of this. It happens basically in the cities.

The people who can afford newspaper they see the adv over there.

Besides that, publishing of posters, leaflets, billboards, calendar, stickers, and festoons also can create awareness in the society.

Result:

We see that after motivating the ministers, making commercial advertisements and publishing posters, leaflets, billboards, calendar, stickers, festoons, creating more awareness in the society. We think it will be successful because people adopt our policy and they respect about their safe and healthy life.

My name: Sayra Khan
My partner: Salahuddin Muhammad and Saleh Ahmed.

Monday, June 15, 2009

Case Study # 1

Participatory Communication in Indigenous Health Development: A Focus Group Study

This paper examines and compares the perceptions of two indigenous cohorts of people in Nepal and Australia. It is revealed that none of the focus group participants in either in Nepal or central Australia had any full participatory experiences. For this reason group discussion is the most appropriate way to involve them in health development program.

In Nepal, the vitamin A program was implemented in their communities and in Australia Aboriginal communities carried act Nutrition program under the governmental health program.

The points of two communities is given below:

Village of Nepal

1. 10 to 15 people (both male and female, age between 20-50)
2. Two researches assistant were employed to help the author and carry out the discussion.
3. English language creates problems
4. Group discussion took place either in a public meeting area or under the big tree.
5. They implemented Vitamin A program
Aboriginal community of Australia

1. Only males are participated
2. A local Aboriginal nutrition worker facilitated the author.
3. Language was not creating any problems.
4. On the local sandy creek side or in the women’s centre.
5. Nutrition program

Result:

1. The Vitamin A protects in Nepal had had only a partial precipitation because of lack of communication with the villagers. Many people did not get any benefit from the Vitamin A distribution project. This project was handed over to female volunteers and they did not pass it on to the villagers.

On the other hand Aboriginal participants in Australia also reported that they did not get the information of delivery process, diabetics, and heart-related diseases.
In both societies they need information and communication as well as assistance such as tablets, injections and other services.

2. Health service program creates some confusion like- Aboriginal participants was get similar pill of dilutes from local clinic. They also admitted that they didn’t get any help from government for a vegetable garden project. In central Australia a big problem for health is Aboriginal people wants separate clinic for both male and female.

In Nepal, before the project start people thought that the government will provide money to the poor children. At the end of the project instead of giving money health workers just informed them about the date and the Vitamin A. That means they were totally miss informed.

3. The villagers of Nepal preferred two ways interactions in order to induce their participation in a health program. So, Nutritional development and objectives, a project should always have an interaction with the village people. A very similar view was expressed by many of the Aboriginal participations of the group of discussions.

For like an example: One of the Aboriginal participations strongly believed that there should the two ways dialogue.

Above all, both Nepalese and Central Australia Aboriginal participants preferred ‘group discussion’ as the best way of achieving participatory communication which is as Cohen believes can operate as ‘a forum to get people involved to help create awareness of issues and to subsequently find a consensus on solutions’.

It may also gradually build up confidence in people to directly control affairs affecting their lives, for instance, building up confidence among Aboriginal people in controlling the local community stores without help of an outsider.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Steps in StrateGic CommuniCation

Strategic Communication

Definition

Strategic Communication means communicating a concept, a process, or data that satisfies a long term strategic goal of an organization by allowing facilitation of advanced planning or communicating over long distances usually using international telecommunications or dedicated global network assets to coordinate actions and activities of operationally significant commercial, non-commercial and military business or combat and logistic subunits.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategic_Communication

This communication is a vision and is based on a clearly defined strategy. It is designed to achieve specific goals established in advance.

Strategic communication management is defined as the systematic planning and realization of information flow, communication, media development and image care in a long-term horizon. It conveys deliberate message through the most suitable media to the designated audience at the appropriate time to contribute to and achieve the desired long-term effect. Communication management is process creation. It has to bring three factors into balance; the message, the media channel and the audience

P-Process

The new steps in Strategic Communication. P-Process is a framework designed to guide communication professionals as they develop strategic communication program. The P-Process is used to develop communication program addressing a wide range of topics like encouraging safer sexual behavior to prevent HIV transmission, promoting child survival, reducing maternal mortality, or increasing contraceptive prevalence etc.
Communication strategically requires a clearly defined strategy with specific goals established in advance. This step-by-step road map leads communication professionals from a loosely defined concept about changing behavior to a strategic and participatory program with a measurable impact on the intended audience.

There are five steps of Strategic Communication.
They are:

Step # 1
ANALYSIS


Analysis is the first step of Strategic communication. It is way of developing effective communication programs. The analytic staffs need to understand the problem of the people, their culture, existing policies and program, active organizations and available communication channels.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

1. Determine severity and causes of problems.
2. Identify factors inhibiting or facilitation desire changes.
3. Develop a problem statement.
4. Carry out formative research.

AUDIENCE / COMMUNICATION ANALYSIS:

1. Conduct a participation analysis.
2. Carry out a social and behavioral analysis
3. Assess communication and training needs.

Step # 2
STRATEGIC DESIGN


This is the second step of development communication in many development organizations. Every communication program or project needs a strategic design with follow this steps. The steps are given below:

1. Establish communication objectives.
2. Develop program approaches & positioning.
3. Determine channels.
4. Draw up an implementation plan
5. Develop a monitoring and evaluation plan

Step # 3
DEVELOPMENT & TESTING


Development and testing is the third step of development communication. Every communication program or project needs a strategic design with follow this steps. The steps are given below:

1. Develop
2. Test and pretest
3. Revise and Retest

Step # 4
IMPLEMENTATION & MONITORING


Implementation requires maximum participation, flexibility and training. Monitoring involves tracking outputs to be sure that all activities take place as planned and potential problems are promptly addressed. Every communication program or project needs a strategic design with follow this steps. The steps are given below:

1. Produce and disseminate
2. Train trainers and field workers.
3. Mobilize key participants
4. Manage and monitor program
5. Adjust program based on monitoring

Step # 5
EVALUATION & REPLANNING


This is the last step of development communication in different organization. This is the evaluation and replanning process. Evaluation measures how well a program a program achieves its objectives. It can explain why a program is effective (or not), including the effects of different activities on different audiences. Every communication program or project needs a strategic design with follow this steps. The steps are given below:

1. Measure outcomes and assess impact
2. Disseminate results
3. Determine future needs.
4. Revise or redesign program

Planning for continuity:

News media relations, like communication in general, are a process. Building good working relationships takes time, and getting results takes persistent effort. Individual journalists come and go, programs change, and new needs arise. Throughout, the public demand for news and information persists. A professional approach, high standards, and commitment to the public interest, applied consistently over time, can help an organization meet its communication goals and advance the cause of family planning and good reproductive health.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

DevelopMent CommuniCation

Definition of Communication

Communication is two way process. One is sender/ encoding and another is receiver/ decoding. Communication is process that there is an exchange and progression of thoughts, feelings or ideas towards a mutually accepted goal or direction. It is a transactional process. It can be interpersonal or mass communication.

Communication is a process where by information is encoded and imparted by a sender to a receiver via a channel/medium. The receiver then decodes the message and gives the sender a feedback. Communication requires that all parties have an area of communicative commonality.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communication

People wants to communicate because of developed there self is called developed communication. It is positive part of life and social benefit. Developed Communication is a process of develops something for the society.

Different Types of Communication in Development Organizations

Knowledge and information are essential for people to successfully respond to the opportunities and challenges of social, economic and technological changes. But to be useful, knowledge and information must be effectively communicated to people. There are four types of communications in Development Organizations. They are:

1. Corporate Communication
2. Internal Communication
3. Advocacy Communication
4. Development Communication

Description of these types are given below:

1. Corporate Communication:

Corporate communications is the communication/ communications issued by a corporate/ organization/ institute to its entire people. People can be both internal like employees, stakeholders, etc and external like agencies, channel partners, media, government, industry bodies and institutes, educational institutes and general public. Corporate communications serves as the liaison between an organization and its entire people.
Organizations can strategically communicate to their people through public relations and advertising. This may involve an employee newsletter or video, crisis management with the news media, special events planning, building product value and communicating with stockholders, clients or donors.
Communicate the mission and activities of the organization, mostly for external audiences.
Corporate communication use media outputs and products to promote the mission and values of the institutions and also information collect from the people who are relevant with the people.

2. Internal Communication:

Internal communication refers all communication within an organization. This kind of communication may be oral or written, face-to-face or virtual, one-on-one or in groups, or it can be interpersonal communication. It is very much effective one communication. Effective internal communication is a vital means of addressing organizational concerns. Clear and concise internal communication helps to establish formal roles and responsibilities for employees and maintain organization and clarity within an establishment.
This kind of communication sometimes works for creating awareness and also it facilitate the flow of information within an institution or project. Sometimes this area can be included in corporate communication.
This is fully interpersonal communication. It ensures timely and effective sharing of the relevant staffs and institution units. It improves synergies and avoids repetition.

3. Advocacy Communication:

Advocacy is essentially an act of communication and we need to understand some of the principles of communication to be effective. This kind of communication influences change at the public or policy level and promotes issues related to the development of the society.
It also raises awareness for the society on hot development issues. Like an example HIV campaign, Drug addiction campaign etc. For development communication the advocate are using communication methods and media to influence specific audiences and support the intended change.

4. Development Communication:

This theory is following in development communication, which is continuing to evolve now a day, with different approaches and perspectives unique to the varied development contexts the field has grown in. This communication supports sustainable change in development operations by engaging key stakeholders. It establishes environments for assessing risks and opportunities and also disseminates information through many campaigns and convinces behavior as well as social change.







A Brief History of Development Communication

Awareness of the different purposes and functions of various types of communication is the first step toward a better understanding of the field of development communication and an effective way to enhance necessary quality standards.

There are three paradigms and they are:

The Dominate Paradigm: Modernization
The Opposing Paradigm: Dependency
The Emerging Paradigm: Participatory

What is Paradigm?

Paradigm means model, pattern, example etc. A paradigm is a typical pattern or an example of something. It also cannot the idea of the mental picture and patterns of thoughts. It is also set of assumptions, concepts, values and practices constituting a view of reality.

These paradigm descriptions are given below

Modernization Paradigm

This word comes from western. This model is kind of one way communication like; Sender-Message-Channel-Receive (SMCR). This theory used to summarize modern transformations of social life. It is one kind of evolutionary theory that assumes hat with help traditional countries can develop in the same ways modern countries did. This pattern is following in World War II. The relation between media structure and content is ignored. According to these theory internal factors in the countries such as illiteracy, traditional agrarian, the traditional attitude of the population, the low division of labors, the lack of communication and infrastructure etc are responsible for underdevelopment.

Dependency Paradigm

Dependency Paradigm is neglected the relevance of local social, political and cultural context. This kind of model expected development to occur along a consistent well-denied linear sequence. Communication in dependency perspectives was seen as a tool educates the people and forges alliances among developing countries. This approach tended to ignore the dynamics within developing countries. Media under the control of the state did not guarantee a more horizontal and people based flow of every kinds of information.

Participatory Paradigm

This is one kind of modern communication. This is a new perspectives based on peoples participation. Importance of actively involving and accounting four people’s perceptions, opinions, beliefs and trust in the decision making process. Two way of communication aiming to analyze and solving key issues. Development agencies and international organizations are convinced of this approach. People based approach of participation with a systematic communication focus.