Georgetown Project RISHI x Health Education Workshops
Happy February! We’re so excited to share another blog to update you all on the work RISHI has been doing in India. Over the past few months, with the help of our RISHI members, we have conducted multiple health education workshops in Rajasthan, India.
In this blog, we will discuss two of the workshops we have conducted. At the end of October, we led a Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) workshop for local women. The workshop covered topics such as sanitation-related health issues and safe hygiene practices. Additionally, at the end of December, we conducted a Menstrual Health & Hygiene workshop that was open to both pilot and non-pilot participants. Keep reading to learn more about these workshops and future workshops we hope to present!
WASH Workshop
At the end of October, our partner NGO, GSVS, held a WASH workshop for 75 local women in Beawar, Rajasthan. Members of RISHI’s Initiatives team collaborated to develop a presentation that covered topics such as water contamination and water-borne illnesses and practices to ensure drinking water safety. RISHI members translated the presentation into Hindi to be presented to the women in Beawar. Overall, this workshop aimed to inform women of the risks present in many drinking-water installations and spread awareness about ensuring the presence of a safe supply of drinking-water in these communities. The workshop emphasized the prevalence of water-borne illnesses in addition to underscoring that children are the most vulnerable to these diseases. These conversations allowed for the dissemination of the best practices and experiences aimed at increasing safe drinking-water access, sanitation, and domestic hygiene. In addition to the presentation, the women were also shown an infographic summarizing many of the topics covered in the presentation. The women found the workshops to be informative and engaging, and they appreciated the Q & A section that was included!
Menstrual Health and Hygiene Workshop
Shortly after conducting the WASH workshop, RISHI members began planning for our next workshop, which focused on Menstrual Health and Hygiene. The creation of this workshop was inspired by RISHI’s previous work with Eco Femme, which involved distributing sustainable sanitary pads and educating women about menstrual health with the hope of destigmatization of menstrual hygiene. GSVS presented this workshop to 100 women in rural Beawar, and we were even able to open the workshop up to the non-pilot participants. Similar to the WASH workshop presentation, RISHI members translated the contents of the slideshow into Hindi to be presented to the women. During the presentation, GSVS covered the physiology behind menstruation, symptoms of menstruation, and frequently asked questions. It was important that the presentation we created provided an overview of menstruation before getting into some of the menstrual health issues womens may face. GSVS also discussed causes of irregular periods and other gynecological issues in addition to how to appropriately address them. A gynecologist was also present on-site to answer any specific questions for the women attending the workshop. The workshop was a success as the women left with more awareness of abnormal menstrual health symptoms and the importance of consulting doctors with any concerns. The workshop also highlighted the lack of education on menstrual health issues, so GSVS will be creating adolescent focus groups for younger girls. RISHI will be creating the materials for these groups soon, so stay tuned!
Looking Ahead
In the upcoming months, GSVS will be conducting some focus groups in other regions to assess their education levels regarding menstrual health. Due to the success of these workshops and lasting impacts of the presentations, especially in terms of education, we will continue hosting workshops covering relevant topics. Our next topic will focus on Health and Nutrition, where we will specifically cover healthy dietary practices that locals in attendance can adopt. It is crucial that our presentations are tailored toward the population we are educating, so that they can incorporate the practices they learn at the workshops into their own households. We are incredibly excited to continue creating materials for these workshops and making lasting impacts on communities in India through health education!
For pictures from our recent workshops and more updates before our next blog post, check out our website https://georgetownrishi.org/, follow us on instagram @georgetown.projectrishi, or email us at dcprojectrishi@gmail.com
