Conducting a Participatory Situation Analysis of.pdf - Global HIV ...

may produce an endless list of topics and questions to be
raised on the survey or explored in focus group discussions
(FGDs). The final product when using the nominal
group technique will be a list of topic areas and areas of
inquiry to be explored using various data gathering
methods during the situation analysis. Decisions on topic
areas are critical to the actions that will follow the situation
analysis, which are to draft a national action plan
and develop a related monitoring and evaluation strategy.
The nominal group technique also may be used for an
Advisory Team meeting after the data collection findings
have been presented. There may be many interesting
findings; however, reporting too many findings can
dilute the power of the final report by giving an overwhelming
sense of what is needed to assist vulnerable
children.
What does the nominal group technique require?
In addition to a facilitator, such as the Situation Analysis
Manager, this decision-making method requires a list of
potential topics or theme areas for the analysis. Findings
from the secondary data analysis provide a basis for discussing
and generating a comprehensive list of potential
topics and sub-topics. Most likely the group will find
gaps in the data provided by secondary analysis. The
Advisory Team can gauge the extent of the information
gathered through the secondary data analysis by reviewing
the descriptions of topic areas below, the data collection
tools provided in this Guide (see Appendices E, F,
G, and H), and Guide to Monitoring and Evaluation
of the National Response for Children Orphaned and
Made Vulnerable by HIV/AIDS (UNICEF, forthcoming).
Taking time to review the range of possible topic areas
and related lines of inquiry encourages a dynamic process
and makes it obvious to others that the Advisory Team is
being thorough.
Potential topic areas
Potential topic areas are listed and described below.
Education. Issues related to school attendance and performance,
such as present or past attendance (ever been
in school), type of school attended (e.g., private or public),
school grades, years completed, reasons for dropout
/not attending school, mobility, and change of school.
Health Care and Prevention. Information on children’s
access to basic health care (e.g., preventive and curative)
and illness management (e.g., traditional therapy, accessing
a health facility, fee payment, drug use, risk of
acquiring HIV/AIDS, methods and commitment of
household resources to medical expenses, other health
problems such as STIs, and early pregnancy). An important
aspect of the health theme is gathering information
on children living with HIV and their access to care,
including prevention and treatment of opportunistic
infections, access to psychosocial support, access to voluntary
counseling and testing, and home-based care.
Nutrition and Food Intake. Information on the type
and extent of food consumption by the child or the
household. Areas of inquiry include number of meals per
day, type of meal (to assess food variety), drinks other
than water, if the child has eaten the previous day and
eats every day, and difference in food allocation within
the same household (i.e., orphans versus non-orphans).
To assess food security, areas of inquiry can include
means of providing food at home (e.g., work or farming),
difficulties providing food, and receipt of government
or NGO assistance.
Psychosocial Support. Involves gaining critical insight
into a child’s well-being and development. Information
gathering on resilience, child’s feelings about ill or dead
parents, feelings about living with the guardian, relations
with other brothers, sisters, and other relatives, and psychosocial
support from individuals (e.g., relatives,
guardian, religious person). Also information on child’s
emotional well-being, such as happiness, sadness, anger,
anxiety, hopelessness, fear, trouble sleeping, refusing
food, social connectivity, separation from siblings, and
possessing memory objects from parents.
Shelter. Housing conditions, including availability and
type of habitation, number of rooms, material used to
build the house, sanitation, source of water, and lighting.
Alternatively, information on other forms of shelter (e.g.,
institutional care) and its condition and/or quality.
Family and Community Capacity. Information on
meeting basic needs of children in vulnerable households,
caretaker availability, income-generating activities,
household inventory, external support sources, inheritance
issues, sibling separation, succession planning, and
access to HIV/AIDS treatment. Also information on
existing community structures to provide essential support
to households with orphans or vulnerable children,
level of government support provided to communities to
assist those most vulnerable, and strategies used by communities
to mobilize resources (human and materials) to
support orphans and vulnerable children.
Policies and Regulations. Efforts to see if policies, laws,
Conducting a Situation Analysis of
Orphans and Vulnerable Children Affected by HIV/AIDS
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