Indian Journal of Public Health Research & Development
  • Year: 2015
  • Volume: 6
  • Issue: 4

Knowledge and Practice of Anganwadi Workers about the Ongoing National Adolescent Girls Anaemia Prophylaxis Programme: a Study in the Rural Villages of Odisha

  • Author:
  • Sumitra Pattanaik1, Lipilekha Patnaik1,, Trilochan Sahu2, E Venkata Rao3
  • Total Page Count: 4
  • Page Number: 189 to 192

1Associate Professor, Department of Community Medicine, IMS & SUM Hospital, S ’O’ A University, Bhubaneswar, Dist.: Khordha, State: Odisha

2Professor & Head, Department of Community Medicine, IMS & SUM Hospital, S ’O’ A University, Bhubaneswar, Dist.: Khordha, State: Odisha

3Professor, Department of Community Medicine, IMS & SUM Hospital, S ’O’ A University, Bhubaneswar, Dist.: Khordha, State: Odisha

*Corresponding author: Dr Lipilekha Patnaik, Associate Professor, Department of Community Medicine, IMS & SUM Hospital, Bhubaneswar Dist.: Khordha State: ODISHA, Pin: 751003, E-mail: drlipilekha@yahoo.co.in Mobile no.-09437322268

Online published on 1 October, 2015.

Abstract

In India, constituting over 113 million adolescent girls, prevalence of anaemia is around 56% with a wide range from 33% reported from Andhra Pradesh to 98% in Rajasthan. Govt. of India and state govt.s with technical support from UNICEF and partners have started the Adolescent Girls Anaemia Control Programme since over a decade. The main objective is to reduce the prevalence and severity of anaemia by regular supply of IFA and deworming tablets to school going adolescent girls by making schools as the delivery channel and to out of school girls at the Anganwadi centers, where Anganwadi workers are the key persons in the implementation of this programme.

To study the knowledge of Anganwadi workers regarding anaemia and its impact on the health of adolescent girls and the ongoing WIFS (Weekly iron folifer supplementation programme).

It was a cross-sectional study carried out in 30 villages of Khorda district, Odisha, selected by cluster sampling technique. 30 Anganwadi workers were interviewed to find out their knowledge about anaemia, its effect on the health of the adolescents and their role in counselling and distribution of IFA tablets in their village.

50% of the AWWs were giving IFA tablets in the prescribed dosage and only 30% were aware about the duration of the supplementation. Almost 43.3% were completely ignorant about anaemia and its complications.

Keywords

Anganwadi workers, Adolescents, WIFS