Primary Health Focusing on SRH, STI , HIV/AIDS and Maternal and Neonatal Child Health(MNCH)
SRH Related: FHIDO has good track record in community systems strengthening and human resources for health to contribute to the attainment of the Government of Ethiopia’s universal coverage of primary health care goal. FHIDO has extensive experience in successfully addressing the sexual and reproductive health of young people and prevention of the vulnerable youth from STI and HIV/AIDS. The interventions have always been one of FHIDO’s priority areas due to a high prevalence of STIs like HIV/AIDS among young people in its target area. In its youth development program department, it has been engaged to undertake continuous dialogue sessions on major factors for youth vulnerability to sexual and reproductive health problems with the use of peer educators. The awareness which has been undertaken in all of its project sites focuses on conveying information about the risks of unwanted pregnancies and STIs, how to address peer and social pressures, how to protect adolescent girls from coercion into unwanted sex which predispose them to many risks.
To ensure the practice of safe behavior and to resist peer pressures, FHIDO has also been organizing continuous life skill trainings for adolescent girls and boys and school SRH and gender club members. School club members as well as girls from low economy have also been provided with sanitary pads and promoted to access and keep their health and sanitation through the construction of model girl’s menstrual hygiene management rooms.
To create youth friendly SRH centers and youth get different services, FHIDO has been equipping the youth centers with different materials and equipment which include computers and access to internet, tables, chairs and shelf, reference materials, table tennis and darts which attract surrounding youth to be tempted to visit the centers.
In addition to this, target youth centers have also been equipped with condom outlets, examination beds and medical equipment coupled with basic capacity building trainings to staffs of the youth centers on psychosocial support and counseling so that those youths who come to the center can get necessary services. FHIDO’s intervention in SRH has brought significant change in creating awareness of wider adolescent youth on basic knowledge to lead healthy life and expand youth friendly centers in target areas.
STI and HIV/AIDS : FHIDO has also been actively engaged through designing different health focused projects to address HIV-impacted OVCs to access comprehensive HIV/AIDS related and other services for improving health, nutrition, education, protection, livelihoods and psychosocial well-being. Through its intervention, it was able to support individuals to access HIV testing and counseling and receive their test results which contributed for increased access to ART for HIV-positive children, youth and caregivers and improved disclosure, adherence and retention to achieve viral suppression for HIV positive children and adults. Moreover, the continuous dialogues and awareness creation sessions reduced stigma and discrimination towards OVCs and HIV affected community members.
Through the initiative, it was able to undertake intensive detection, suppression and responding to HIV cases. The active case finding of the most at risk adolescents, children and care givers within the community has enabled to detect new positive children , youth and caregivers and put them on treatment which ensured treatment adherence to suppress viral load in each of its target woredas in Arada, Lideta and Bole sub city. Moreover, it works intensive awareness on personal hygiene and sanitations, Covid-19 prevention and provision of PPEs and sanitation materials for the community.
Maternal and Neonatal Child Health(MNCH): FHIDO has been working to increase awareness to prevent maternal deaths during deliberations due to complications of pregnancy. Moreover, to address threats which is affecting pregnant mothers and newborn children, it has also been creating awareness on how to prevent infections, anemia, malaria, diarrhea, nutritional deficiencies, prolonged labor, unsafe abortion and the importance of delivery at health facility. To increase service provision and access and utilization of maternal and child health services, it has also been engaged through the provision of basic equipment and supplies for target health centers and also has been engaged to improve the skills of Health Workers at facility and community level in collaboration with health bureau.