6. SEWA SOCIAL SECURITY NET
6.1 HEALTH CARE
Introduction
Recognizing and responding to the need for intervention,
SEWA expanded its activities and started a community based,
women-led primary health care programme in 1984. Continuing since then, SEWA has remained committed
to its objective of ensuring health to its members to ensure
better economic activities.
The focus has been on primary health care and maternal
and child health initiatives. SEWA believes that unless
the women take care of their own bodies and are educated
enough to dispel the myths and misconceptions, no amount
of curative or preventive service can have any impact on
them. Therefore,
SEWA involves them in training and awareness programmes
conducted by health workers.
A primary objective of
the health services is to provide healthcare to the very
poor, particularly those living in areas not otherwise served
by government or non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
Approaches
SEWA
has helped its members obtain health care, which is run
by women themselves. Our approach emphasizes health education
as well as medicinal care. It also involves synchronization
and collaboration with government health services for immunization;
micronutrient supplementation, family planning, tuberculosis
control and referral care at public hospitals, dispensaries
and primary health centers.
Linking
health security to work security, which means that all economic
activities at SEWA have a health component and all health
action, in turn, is linked to producer's groups, workers'
trade committees and self-help groups and their economic
activities.
SEWA has taken the following initiatives in various
fields
·
Capacity building
programmes for local women especially traditional midwives,
so that they become the barefoot doctors of their communities/villages.
·
Women-centered health care led by local women, including occupational
health, reproductive health, maternal health, mental health
and nutrition.
·
Addressing
common health problems like tuberculosis among poor families.
·
Promotion of
health and well-being by providing access to health information
and health education.
·
Linking health
services to insurance, provision of basic amenities like
sanitation literacy and other developmental programmes.
·
Emphasizing
self-reliance both in economic terms and in terms of women
themselves owning, controlling and managing their own health
activities.
Growth Through
Fruitful Partnerships
SEWA Health’s infrastructure and services have arisen
largely to meet the healthcare needs voiced by SEWA members. But SEWA Health has also been shaped by its
collaboration with many different partners.
For example, the mobile reproductive and child health
camps are funded largely by the United Nations Family Planning
Agency (UNFPA). SEWA Health has been working in collaboration
with the World Health Organization (WHO), the Government
of India (GOI) and the Ahmedabad
Municipal Corporation in providing DOTS (Directly Observed
Treatment, Short Course) for tuberculosis to residents of
the North Zone of Ahmedabad. The GOI, UNFPA and the Ford Foundation support
the health education efforts.
These collaborations have benefited SEWA and its
members, by providing financial and technical support to
develop capacity for providing healthcare, and by facilitating
access to government services and other resources that might
otherwise have been inaccessible.
In return, SEWA Health has been able to help these
organizations in reaching some of the poorest informal sector
workers
SEWA's Contribution to Tuberculosis Control Program
The Public Health Cooperative of SEWA
has been involved in the Revised National Tuberculosis Control
Program (RNTCP) since 1999 in association with Ahmedabad
Municipal Corporation.
SEWA is privileged and proud to be the only organization
in Gujarat to be a part
of this program. About 5,00,000
people in the eastern parts of Ahmedabad
such as Isanpur, Meghaninagar, Civil, Amraiwadi,
and Chamanpura are covered under
this project. SEWA's 20 organizers including health workers, area leaders,
and aanganwadi workers are providing
their services in this program as TB DOTS (Tuberculosis
Direct Observe Treatment Short time) workers. Percentage
of patients who have been cured from TB by SEWA's organizers has risen from 85% to 88% this year.
The self-employed women members are associated with
agricultural sector, salt harvesting, readymade garment,
construction work etc. Because of their occupations, they
have to face many hurdles and risk SEWA Health care is providing
them heath education, immunization, training for family
planning, referral care, health insurance service, ayurvedic
treatment, and other health services. SEWA also provides
low cost standard quality medicines.
SEWA Health Unit is in the process of organising health
education camps for their members and the members’ families
through interactive methods using computers, audio-visual
equipments, SAT-COMM and other intermediate technology tools.
SEWA Health Unit feels that these innovative methods will
be particularly useful in disseminating vital information
of modern world scourges such as TB & AIDS. The activities
as per the 11 questions are detailed below.
| Particulars |
(No. Of Members/Rs.) |
| Employment |
302
|
| Income |
Rs.27,76,500/- |
| Nutritious Food |
82,655
|
| Healthcare services |
4,50,287
(837 Camps) |
| Childcare |
5,01,550
|
| Housing |
75
|
| Assets/ Ownership |
Rs.75,61,884/- |
Organised Strength |
29,011
|
| Leadership |
565
|
| Self-reliance |
302
|
|
Education |
2,562
|
Health check-up camp conducted by
SEWA for women and children
6.2 CHILDCARE
Introduction
At SEWA it is well understood that without childcare,
including child development, its goal of full employment
and self-reliance will remain unfulfilled. Working mothers
can not take their children to their workplaces without
jeopardizing their own work efficiency and their children’s
safety. SEWA believes that women’s struggle to emerge out
of poverty through the quest for work and income security,
must be supported by quality childcare.
SEWA’s childcare program emerged in mid 1970 from the needs
expressed by its members. These centers,
formed with SEWA’s support, are
managed by co-operatives of childcare providers. Each center
serves 40-50 children in the age group of 0-6 years; and
focus on the overall development of the children, including
their physical and intellectual growth.
Major Activities
The main activities undertaken by the childcare centers run by SEWA are as under.
(a.)
Teachers of
the childcare center hold regular
meetings with the mothers; and discuss their children’s
development and give their suggestions.
(b.)
Children are
regularly weighed and records of their growth are properly
maintained.
(c.)
The children
are provided with nutritious meals (milk in case of infants)
(d.)
The childcare
centers are also centers
for child immunizations, antenatal and postnatal care. SEWA
works closely with the government health programs for providing
these services.
(e.)
Children in
the centers are involved in pre-primary
creative activities like drawing, painting and craftwork.
(f.)
Exhibitions
of the children’s work are held at regular intervals.
(g.)
The teachers
make a conscious attempt to create a stimulating and supportive
atmosphere at the centers.
From the work experience of 3 decades in the Childcare
Program, it has been seen that children who have been in
SEWA childcare centers value learning
and education. In two well-attended meetings of our childcare
center, children freely spoke
about importance of such centers
in their lives. Thus SEWA’s Childcare
Program not only provides safe childcare for working mothers,
but also lays a strong foundation for the sound physical
and intellectual growth of the children.
Activities
Undertaken During The Year
·
This year health
care facility covered 20,172 patients were treated in 55
villages. As a result of mobile health van services, women
got medical services at their doorsteps and could economise
their time and earn more income. These health care trainings
were organised to emphasize the importance of health care
in adolescent girls with they were made aware of the primary
health care needs and sanitation at the same time.
·
1500 adolescent
girls prearranged a fair for the adolescent girls in which
they were given education about health awareness. This health
care campaign undertaken helped the adolescent girls to
learn the importance of primary health care and sanitation.
·
Child Care
group felicitated passed out students of class 10 &
12 who were brought up at the Balseva
Kendra and also arranged picnics for the children. Polio
vaccination was given to 33,912 children, medicines and
vitamins worth Rs.3,02,278/- were
distributed.
·
Adolescents girls were given nutritious food and members participated
in health training programs. As a part of the health care
Health awareness was imparted amongst 52,560 members by
visits at homes.
·
Currently there
are 12 Balseva Kendra with 642
children. Various child development activities are carried
out at these centres. At these centres the mothers are also
taught how they can take good of their children.
·
Apart from
physical and intellectual growth of children and safe child
care for working mothers, various other trainings related
to pregnant women, feeding mothers as well as health camps,
regular trainings and meetings etc. are covered under SEWA’s
child care program.
·
Under health
care different kinds of trainings and camps were organised.
574 adolescent girls were covered under 12 villages for
adolescent girls training.642 members were benefited from
health awareness camps.
·
Under health
care services members were given training on primary health
education, adolescent girls training, midwives training.
Activities such as immunization to children, family planning
operation, adolescent and midwife’s training, eye and other
operations, drug distributions were carried through out
the year.
·
Gynec camps were organized in co-ordination with SEWA Health
Department where check-up facility and required medicines
were provided to the women members.
6.3 INSURANCE
Introduction
SEWA members face several aspects of vulnerability
and risks resulting into huge economic leakages and losses,
consequently thrusting the women and their families deeper
into poverty. Considering this, SEWA has set up its insurance
programme in 1992 as a support to tackle as many possible
risks in the lives of poor women members. This gave birth
to SEWA Insurance Unit or Vimo
SEWA. Vimo SEWA is an integrated
insurance program aiming to provide social protection for
SEWA members to cover their life cycle needs and the various
risks they face in their lives, through an insurance organisation
in which they themselves are the users, owners and managers
of all services. They activities undertaken during the year
are mentioned herewith.
Vimo
SEWA
is an integrated insurance program aiming at providing social
protection to members, covering
their life cycle needs and the various risks they face in
their lives; through an insurance organization in which
they themselves are the users, owners and managers of all
services. Vimo SEWA offers two
types of payment schemes to its insurance members. Members
can either pay their premium annually or through a fixed
deposit with SEWA Bank. Under the fixed deposit option,
members deposit a lump sum in fixed deposit in SEWA Bank.
(The amount depends on the scheme selected by the member)
The interest accrued on this deposit goes towards annual
premium. Thus, a woman gets continuous insurance coverage
of her choice and obtains much-needed, long-term social
protection. The amount to be placed in fixed deposit is
subject to revision in view of changing interest rates.
Activities Undertaken During the Year
Fixed Insurance 2004
|
| |
Women only |
Women and Husband |
| Ahmedabad City |
14,409 |
18,864 |
| Ahmedabad |
778 |
880 |
| Banaskantha |
1,256 |
1,478 |
| Gandhinagar |
291 |
451 |
| Kheda |
2,438 |
2,949 |
| Kutch |
5,681 |
5,784 |
| Mehsana |
179 |
246 |
| Sabarkantha |
101 |
139 |
| Surendranagar |
416 |
518 |
| Vadodara |
64 |
79 |
|
Total |
25,613 |
31,388 |
Price
of fixed insurance: Women 1000/-, Women and Husband 1650/-
2004
Insurance Claims Granted |
| |
No. of Women members |
Amount Rs. |
| Ahmedabad City |
1,950 |
34,45,880 |
| 