A healthy effort to help rural and semi urban women

Tuesday, 18 August 2009 04:31 administrator
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The Hindu 18.08.2009

A healthy effort to help rural and semi urban women

L. Renganathan



At the doorstep: Vani Soundarapandian addressing a section of the participants at a health awareness camp in Karur.

KARUR: When it comes to health awareness, women have always suffered for lack of access to a better way of living through proper medicare and preventive measures. The plight of the rural women and those in semi urban towns is all the more disconcerting. A long way has come since the days of yore when women could never dream of discussing their problems with any medical practitioner and the efforts put in the pioneering individuals, institutions, governmental agencies and voluntary organisations needed to be recognized for bringing about the change.

Here in Karur is a medical practitioner who goes about the task of sensitising women on maintaining good health and educating them on various health aspects. Vani Sundarapandian, Member of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and who runs Jananam, an assisted conception unit addresses groups of women enlightening them on the various ailments that could afflict them as they age.

“Health education of women has to be taken forward in right earnest and I’m just playing out my part as a socially inclined medical practitioner. While several media have their role, a distinctive contribution could be made through personal interaction for an amalgamated group of women and that’s why we conduct our awareness programmes for specific target groups,” Dr. Vani says of her camps that are conducted absolutely free of cost to participants and the total number of camps have now crossed 50. The camps have been conducted in Karur and neighbouring districts.

“Initially the target audience at the ‘women only meets’ was teachers in schools and colleges, and we expanded to self-help groups and we followed it up reaching out to police officers and women employed in big industries. My focus is primarily on self-breast examination, prevention of cervical cancer and nutrition. The presentation is followed by an interactive sessions wherein the participants are encouraged to ask questions. When the initial blues vanish a torrent of questions on various issues follow and the participants return with sense of betterment,” observes Dr. Vani. The interactive session helps dispel many myths and fallacies that have got entrenched in the minds of the women, she adds.

Last Updated on Tuesday, 18 August 2009 04:34