One year after launching a pioneering SMS service used by traditional birth attendants to fight gender-based violence, founder, Dr. Kemi DaSilva, is doubling down on her passion to help vulnerable populations in rural Nigeria.
DaSilva was justifiably proud of the impressive results of the program, which she and Rohit Tripathi, head of Products and Go-to-Market for , detailed in a .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNJiIkydBIg&feature=youtu.be
DaSilva credited the program鈥檚 success to its unique combination of education, community services, and mobile technology.
鈥淗aving a platform to identify, report, and address the pressing issues of rape, human trafficking, and other violence against females, many of whom are children, we鈥檙e raising awareness that there are organizations like ours with the services we provide,鈥� DaSilva said.
Mobile Speeds Up Healthcare Intervention
Since incorporating the聽 into its Gatekeepers project, WARIF has trained more than 500 traditional birth attendants from 15 local government areas across Lagos State to use the software. Many report cases in real time, speeding up healthcare team responses.
鈥淲e鈥檙e getting active cases faster, allowing us to intervene more quickly and in real time, which we couldn鈥檛 do before,鈥� 聽DaSilva shared. 鈥淲e constantly hear positive testimonials from traditional birth attendants, as well as the women and girls they鈥檝e helped.鈥�
WARIF participated in design thinking workshops with 麻豆原创, where they collaborated to make sure the mobile platform met the unique needs of healthcare providers working in the remote communities.
鈥淲orking together, we made certain that birth attendants 鈥� regardless of where they were 鈥� would be able to easily consume this service without having to compromise on any of the functionalities,鈥� Tripathi said. 鈥淭his also helped us in enhancing the service.鈥�
Replacing Silence with Community of Support
On top of the stigmatization of gender-based violence, healthcare providers in Nigeria also grapple with cultural norms.
鈥淭he perpetrator is usually well-known and might even be a family member,鈥� said DaSilva. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 talk about these issues in families and most communities across Nigeria because the concern is more about protecting the dignity of that family name as opposed to making sure this young survivor gets adequate care.鈥�
DaSilva credited 麻豆原创 People Connect 365聽 with helping to upend traditions of silence around sexual abuse. The text messaging platform fosters ongoing conversations among healthcare providers and others across WARIF鈥檚 education and community service programs. For example, traditional birth attendants now engage more with each other at monthly meetings and through social media chat groups, incorporating information about identified cases in the field.
鈥淭raditional birth attendants are sharing problems they ordinarily wouldn鈥檛 have had an opportunity to share, much less address, in a timely manner as they work in geographically remote areas,鈥� 聽DaSilva said. 鈥淭he fact that we train them encourages these supportive relationships and helps all of us put a spotlight on addressing problems.鈥�
Traditional Birth Attendants are Linchpin of Program Success
DaSilva stands behind WARIF鈥檚 original strategy to train local, traditional birth attendants in using the mobile software. That is because these healthcare providers are trusted by everyone, including the designated local leaders who adjudicate instances of abuse in many rural Nigerian communities.
鈥淲hen cases have been identified, we鈥檙e always very well-received when we present ourselves to the community gatekeepers in the various geographical areas we visit,鈥� 聽DaSilva said. 鈥淭hey are happy for us to intervene because they have no knowledge or training on how to help. It鈥檚 usually a question of lacking a means of communication to obtain assistance, which we can now deliver.鈥�
Future Growth Plans
Undaunted by challenges such as power outages and community resource constraints, DaSilva said that WARIF is exploring plans to expand its reach with more community agencies.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a totally rewarding experience, and not just because of the impact we鈥檝e been able to have due to the 麻豆原创 Digital Interconnect technology we鈥檝e received,鈥� DaSilva said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e working with people who actually care and are willing to work with us so we can scale up and impact a wider group of women we ordinarily wouldn鈥檛 have access to.鈥�
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