National neonatology forum (NNF): Role in mainstreaming newborn health in India

In the late seventies, a group of concerned and motivated pediatricians founded the National Neonatology Forum of India. This proactive group highlighted the plight of non-existent neonatal care to the government. The group got together to define the tasks and priorities of the forum. In addition, they formulated the norms for newborn care including the need for space, equipment and the nursing and medical manpower. Realizing the acute shortage of trained professionals along with the other inadequacies, the forum's committed members put up a strong case of advocacy for newborn care at the government, non-government and the community level. The sustained efforts resulted in formulation of “Minimum Perinatal Care Task Force” by the Ministry of Health & FW, Government of India in 1982. The forum then laid guidelines for health care, education and research. The sustained highly motivated and aggressive advocacy with well defined task oriented objectives and efforts began to bear fruits in the decade of nineties. This was first reflected by inclusion of the newborn care albeit at a low key in the Government of India, Ministry of Health & FW, “Child Survival and Safe motherhood Program”. The legacy has continued and more recently the forum has been actively pursuing neonatal care program with the government and non-government national and international agencies. These are the Integrated Management of Neonatal & Childhood Illnesses (IMNCI) and Facility Based Newborn Care program under RCH II, the flagship program of the National Rural Health Mission.