The project will be following the Training of the Trainers manual that was Published by the government of India in 2013. It was relevant to the activities we are to carryout. Although Uganda has publications on menstrual hygiene management, the Indian one was found to be more detailed and we have chosen to adopt to fit for our curriculum.
MENSTRUAL HYGIENE MANAGEMENT
A woman menstruates for a total of 40 years in her lifetime. But vast majorities of women who live in the developing world do not have access to clean water, safe and private spaces for washing and cleaning, materials for absorbing menstrual blood, or facilities for proper and safe disposal of used menstrual hygiene materials.
In India, it is estimated that 200 million women have a poor understanding of menstrual hygiene practices. Moreover, only 12 per cent of Indian women and girls use commercial sanitary products.
Historically, myths, taboos and stigma around the female body and menstruation have overshadowed progressive initiatives aimed at improving menstrual hygiene in India. Many communities associate menstruation with impurity and pollution of the sacred. This belief is coupled with restrictions and sometimes bizarre regulations on women’s everyday lives and activities. For instance, some of the most common practices include restrictions on entering one’s own home or kitchen, touching food, water and plants, or participating in religious activities.
Such beliefs and practices not only violate women’s dignity, they have serious implications for their health and wellbeing. To make matters worse, a lack of resources and knowledge means that many women do not have access to basic hygiene materials and facilities. In some cases, women are forced to resort to unhygienic options, such as using ash, newspapers, hay, sand or old rags to absorb menstrual blood. Consequently, every period is loaded with mental,emotional and physical trauma, which affects the day to day lives of women across India.
Twenty-three per cent of girls in India drop out of school soon after reaching puberty. Schools are not equipped with the basic amenities for menstrual management, with non-availability of menstruation materials, places for changing menstruation materials, running water in toilets and the absence of disposal facilities all impacting on a girl’s education. As a result of stigma and taboos, communication between girls and teachers about healthy menstrual practices is non-existent.
LU-3: MENSTRUAL HYGIENE MANAGEMENT INTRODUCTION
Menstrual hygiene is fundamental to the dignity and wellbeing of women and girls, and an important part of basic hygiene, sanitation and reproductive health services. However, menstruation is too often taboo, with many negative cultural attitudes associated with it, including the idea that menstruating women and girls are ‘contaminated’, ‘dirty’ and ‘impure’.
Facing this cultural challenge head on, in 2012 the Indian government and
WASH United organised the ground-breaking Nirmal Bharat ‘Great WASH’
Yatra. Following the event, in which WSSCC led work on Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM), conducted interviews with 747 women and girls and engaged more than 12,000 people in focus group discussions, teachers, community health workers and anganwadi workers indicated a huge appetite for more MHM training, specifically to address:
1. A lack of knowledge of health issues of MHM at grassroots level;
2. Lack of MHM knowledge and skills among grassroots level workers from health, education and Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS);
3. Unclear roles and responsibilities of stakeholders on implementation of MHM education and training;
4. Lack of motivation among grassroots workers to tackle the subject (without further guidance).
To meet this demand, this Manual has been developed for trainers of WASH and for health practitioners, to enable them to speak confidently about an issue that is regularly shrouded in silence, and which impacts upon women and girls health, education and livelihoods. The Manual includes a series of learning units (LUs), which are aimed at teaching practitioners how to improve menstrual hygiene for women and girls. It covers key aspects of menstrual hygiene in different settings and is based on examples of good menstrual hygiene practice from around the world.
Familiarity with this Manual will allow a trainer to complete two main objectives:
1. Plan, organise and conduct a five-day Training Programme at the state, district and village levels for teachers, anganwadi workers, accredited social health activist (ASHA) workers and auxiliary nurse midwives (ANM);
2. Monitor and evaluate Training Programmes.
Familiarity with this Manual will equip prospective trainers with knowledge of: MHM; the ability to pass on training and delivery skills to colleagues and staff; techniques for managing a MHM training course; and how to use various information, education and communication (IEC) tools on MHM.
Ten trainers from each state in India will be selected to participate in the Training Programme (depending on the size of the state, the number of trainers may be adjusted to suit). These trainers will be selected from professionals working on WASH and health with NGOs, educational institutions or government. Each batch of trainers will oversee 25-35 trainees.
At the end of training, participants will be able to:
1.Explain the concept of MHM;
2.Conduct the Training Programme for grassroots workers from the health, education and ICDS departments;
3.Describe the process of safe disposal of sanitary napkins;
4.Demonstrate participatory approaches in the field;
5.Explain the necessity and importance of MHM;
6.Describe the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders on MHM;
7.Describe the social marketing methodology for demand generation and IEC activities.
Necessity, concept and components of MHM
The relationship between health and menstrual hygiene
Exclusion, disability and the role of men in MHM
MHM for different age groups (adolescents and menopausal women)
Multi-level institutional arrangements and the roles and responsibilities of different stakeholders in MHM
Facilities required for menstrual hygiene management in schools, anganwadi centres, public places and workplaces
Safe disposal of sanitary napkins
Direct training skills and methods
Community participation approaches and their applications
Tools of behaviour change and usage of IEC material
Training Evaluation
BACKGROUND LU-3:
MENSTRUAL HYGIENE MANAGEMENT
A woman menstruates for a total of 40 years in her lifetime. But vast majorities of women who live in the developing world do not have access to clean water, safe and private spaces for washing and cleaning, materials for absorbing menstrual blood, or facilities for proper and safe disposal of used menstrual hygiene materials.
In India, it is estimated that 200 million women have a poor understanding of menstrual hygiene practices. Moreover, only 12 per cent of Indian women and girls use commercial sanitary products.
Historically, myths, taboos and stigma around the female body and menstruation have overshadowed progressive initiatives aimed at improving menstrual hygiene in India. Many communities associate menstruation with impurity and pollution of the sacred. This belief is coupled with restrictions and sometimes bizarre regulations on women’s everyday lives and activities. For instance, some of the most common practices include restrictions on entering one’s own home or kitchen, touching food, water and plants, or participating in religious activities.
Such beliefs and practices not only violate women’s dignity, they have serious implications for their health and wellbeing. To make matters worse, a lack of resources and knowledge means that many women do not have access to basic hygiene materials and facilities. In some cases, women are forced to resort to unhygienic options, such as using ash, newspapers, hay, sand or old rags to absorb menstrual blood. Consequently, every period is loaded with mental,emotional and physical trauma, which affects the day to day lives of women across India.
Twenty-three per cent of girls in India drop out of school soon after reaching puberty. Schools are not equipped with the basic amenities for menstrual management, with non-availability of menstruation materials, places for changing menstruation materials, running water in toilets and the absence of disposal facilities all impacting on a girl’s education. As a result of stigma and taboos, communication between girls and teachers about healthy menstrual practices is non-existent.
LU-3: MENSTRUAL HYGIENE MANAGEMENT INTRODUCTION
Menstrual hygiene is fundamental to the dignity and wellbeing of women and girls, and an important part of basic hygiene, sanitation and reproductive health services. However, menstruation is too often taboo, with many negative cultural attitudes associated with it, including the idea that menstruating women and girls are ‘contaminated’, ‘dirty’ and ‘impure’.
Facing this cultural challenge head on, in 2012 the Indian government and
WASH United organised the ground-breaking Nirmal Bharat ‘Great WASH’
Yatra. Following the event, in which WSSCC led work on Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM), conducted interviews with 747 women and girls and engaged more than 12,000 people in focus group discussions, teachers, community health workers and anganwadi workers indicated a huge appetite for more MHM training, specifically to address:
1. A lack of knowledge of health issues of MHM at grassroots level;
2. Lack of MHM knowledge and skills among grassroots level workers from health, education and Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS);
3. Unclear roles and responsibilities of stakeholders on implementation of MHM education and training;
4. Lack of motivation among grassroots workers to tackle the subject (without further guidance).
To meet this demand, this Manual has been developed for trainers of WASH and for health practitioners, to enable them to speak confidently about an issue that is regularly shrouded in silence, and which impacts upon women and girls health, education and livelihoods. The Manual includes a series of learning units (LUs), which are aimed at teaching practitioners how to improve menstrual hygiene for women and girls. It covers key aspects of menstrual hygiene in different settings and is based on examples of good menstrual hygiene practice from around the world.
INTRODUCTION
Familiarity with this Manual will allow a trainer to complete two main objectives:
1. Plan, organise and conduct a five-day Training Programme at the state, district and village levels for teachers, anganwadi workers, accredited social health activist (ASHA) workers and auxiliary nurse midwives (ANM);
2. Monitor and evaluate Training Programmes.
Familiarity with this Manual will equip prospective trainers with knowledge of: MHM; the ability to pass on training and delivery skills to colleagues and staff; techniques for managing a MHM training course; and how to use various information, education and communication (IEC) tools on MHM.
PARTICIPANTS
Ten trainers from each state in India will be selected to participate in the Training Programme (depending on the size of the state, the number of trainers may be adjusted to suit). These trainers will be selected from professionals working on WASH and health with NGOs, educational institutions or government. Each batch of trainers will oversee 25-35 trainees.
At the end of training, participants will be able to:
1.Explain the concept of MHM;
2.Conduct the Training Programme for grassroots workers from the health, education and ICDS departments;
3.Describe the process of safe disposal of sanitary napkins;
4.Demonstrate participatory approaches in the field;
5.Explain the necessity and importance of MHM;
6.Describe the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders on MHM;
7.Describe the social marketing methodology for demand generation and IEC activities.