Guide for Community Assessments on Women's Health Care - ICRW

This is an example of how one group prioritized their list
High (red) Medium (blue) Low (green)
HIV and AIDS
Sexually transmitted infections
Sexual violence/rape
Cervical cancer
Teenage pregnancies
Malaria
Diarrhea
TB (tuberculosis)
High blood pressure
Lack of food & safe water
Beatings/physical violence
Colds
Headache
Period pains
Back pains
Ask – “What are your reasons <strong>for</strong> your priorities? For example, why did you rate AIDS ‘high’ and period
pains ‘low’?”
Then ask – “Which are the three most important health problems?” This will bring out people’s reasons
<strong>for</strong> priorities, women’s health-seeking behavior and cultural factors around the issues. You may want
to ask questions during the discussion, especially if issues are put <strong>for</strong>ward and then dropped from
the final list.
➎ HOW TO RECOGNIZE DISEASES? WHAT DO WE DO ABOUT THEM?
This step is used only with HIV-positive women and untested/negative women.
Ask – “How do most people recognize diseases when they get them? What do they do to get treated if
they are affected by diseases?”
Record this in<strong>for</strong>mation on cards and tape on the body map, or on a flipchart if the body map is
already too overloaded with other in<strong>for</strong>mation.
Note: The aim of this step is to document women’s perceptions, understandings, and any
misconceptions or myths about diseases mentioned in this exercise. Get participants talking
openly about their views and keep a careful record. Don’t worry at this point about providing
correct technical in<strong>for</strong>mation. The aim is to get people talking to find out what their perceptions are
and to listen carefully and record them. However, you should, in a sensitive way, challenge major
misconceptions.
Examples from the workshops:
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We think that menstruation is a disease.
We have been told that you can get cancer from sleeping with a woman who is
menstruating.
We’ve heard that cancer of the cervix is a big problem, but we have no idea how to get
tested <strong>for</strong> this disease.
Traditional healers can cure malaria, using bitter roots or herbs or getting a patient to
bathe in certain places at certain times of the day.
➏ QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS (10 minutes): Put up the model body map, showing the correct
placement of major organs if necessary. Use this to clarify points on body parts, their positions and
functions. Then encourage participants to ask questions about major body parts and their functions.
Correct any ideas that are BADLY wrong in terms of where things are in the body or how diseases are
contracted.
Chapter C: Facilitating <strong>Community</strong> Assessment Workshops 37