Working in partnership to improve health and well-

being of vulnerable children and women in

Central Asia

HealthProm

UK-based international development NGO working with local communities in Eastern Europe and Asia to improve health and social care for vulnerable women and children.

We currently work in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Caucasus and Northern Afghanistan.

 

         

     

HealthProm

Background...UK – USSR Medical Exchange

Programme, 1984

Aim: To build up friendship and trust between the UK and the USSR through the

medical network

...to achieve sustainable, culturally sensitive dissemination of best practices in health and social care for vulnerable groups in the region in partnership with our overseas partners

Our mission now...

To keep women and their babies safe We work with local partners to promote safe childbirth

To keep families together and prevent child institutionalisation We ensure parents get the support they need to care for their children, especially those with a disability or at risk.

 

Our aims...

Prevention through safe motherhood

Safe childbirth and newborn care

Early intervention for improved child social care and development

Supporting vulnerable parents to care for their children, especially children with disabilities.

We focus on:

capacity-building evidence-based practice partnership work cost-effectiveness

Key principles of our work

KyrgyzstanTajikistanUzbekistanAzerbaijan Northern Afghanistan Russia

Where we work

In the past we also worked in Ukraine and Kazakhstan.

Train health and social care professionals  Develop effective interventions, publications and

training materials

Raise public awareness and advocate at regional and national levels

Organise public health education and prevention campaigns

Build capacity of local NGOs and provide networking opportunities

What we do

Safe Childbirth Project in AzerbaijanTogether with our Azerbaijani partner NGO “Family and Society” we trained more than 300 doctors and midwives in more than 6 regions in the country and provided necessary medical equipment to local hospitals in Sheki and Kizhi regions. The project was funded by GlaxoSmithKline and started in 2003.

Inter-regional League of Midwives of RussiaHealthProm helped develop the first professional association for midwives for Russia, which acts as a voice for Russian midwives and advocates for a defined professional role for midwives based on international definitions and standards of midwifery education and practice.

Bologoye Hospital Project (Tver region, Russia)HealthProm provided essential medical equipment and professional training for the

Bologoye Hospital Maternity Department

Newborn care in UzbekistanHealthProm provided training of trainers in resuscitation of newborn babies in Uzbekistan in partnership with the Ministry of Health and UNICEF

Past Projects and Achievements

Altai Child Disability Project (Siberia, Russia) HealthProm and our Russian partner NGO Revival established two day care centres for disabled

children and their families, which provided community based care and support service for disabled children and their families in this Siberian region

Young Child Attachment, St. Petersburg In partnership with the St Petersburg Early Intervention Institute Focus on understanding of children's needs for development and a Russian evidence base of research

findings on what works best for child development Building awareness and dissemination of information on child attachment

Past Projects and Achievements (cont.)

Current Projects“Supporting young disabled children and

their families in Kyrgyz Republic”• 2008-2011

• Funded by the Big Lottery Fund, UK

• Working in partnership with two Kyrgyz NGOs – Association of Parents

of Disabled Children, Bishkek, and Public Association “Shoola-Kol”, Issyk-Kul region

Project Aims

To support most vulnerable children with intellectual and physical disability AND their families by providing community-based early childhood intervention services

To improve understanding by government and community of child disability and rights of disabled children through work with media, government and general public

To provide parents and specialists with access to accessible information and resources on child disability to help them provide better care for the children

Established 2 unique Day care centres in Bishkek and Bokonbaevo with outreach work/home visits to isolated families

Bishkek day centre – the only centre in the country with the focus on early intervention for young children with severe disabilities aged from 0 to 7 y.o.

Bokonbaevo centre -a rural centre based in a mainstream school with outreach work to other villages, works with local FAPs

Achievements

Established excellent links with local and national media, with successful awareness campaigns and PR work. positively changing attitudes

HealthProm provided  multi-disciplinary training for local specialists and parents on family support, child disability and child development.

A series of accessible publications for parents and specialists

Achievements (cont.)

Built capacity of local partners and empowered parents though training and regular support, study visits and activities

Each year provided summer holidays opportunities for more than 100 children with disabilities (and their families) including children from Belovodsky Internat

Established active links with maternity hospitals, FAPs and policlinics to reach new families

Achievements (cont.)

“Reducing poverty, empowering vulnerable families, strengthening partnerships and advocating for rights”

Funded by the European Commission

Partners – NGO Disabled Women’s League “Ishtirok”

Opened Kishti Centre providing Early Year Support Services to babies and mothers at risk of institualisation

An Early Years Support Centre service in Dushanbe, Tajikistan

Project Aims: To reduce maternal and newborn deaths through

recruiting and training community health workers in local villages to provide basic health care

To raise awareness and improving quality of care in 10 poor villages

To provide essential equipment and supplies, build premises for the health centre

To provide motor transport for obstetric emergencies

Reducing maternal and newborn deaths in Charharkint District, Northern Afghanistan

New project funded by ICCO started in January 2011

Main partner: NGO Nur Bala, Talas

Other partners - Association of Parents of Disabled Children (ARDI), Shoola-Kol

Aim: to support children with severe and multiple intellectual disabilities and their families in Talas region through establishing and strengthening sustainable community-based support mechanisms in the region.

Increasing access to basic services for children with intellectual disabilities in the Talas regionNEW

!

…based on the success of our current project funded by the Big Lottery Fund and will continue our partnership with ARDI in Bishkek and Shoola-Kol in Bokonbaevo.

Through Nur Bala we will support 6 parents groups to become local Family Support Centres and will establish a regional network of parents groups that will give a voice to families of children with disabilities, with a specific focus on intellectual disabilities.

Talas project (cont.)

HealthProm is currently embarking on an ambitious growth strategy that will take it to its next development phase, and enable it to increase its influence and impact.

Developing regional strategy for Central Asia, new cross-border and cross-sector programmes and projects

Expanding and diversifying its partners and supporter base

Our Future Plans