In a bid to address the meagre access to complete adolescent and maternal care in India that manifests in higher disease burden among women specially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Integrated Health and Wellbeing (IHW) Council along with its partners ARTIST for Her and StepOne today launched a dedicated, multilingual national-level Janani Health Helpline to answer queries pertaining to COVID care, pregnancy care, obstetrics and gynaecological matters, infant care, and guidance on nutrition.
The helpline is a part of overarching ‘Shapath 1000 Days’programme, a three-year-long multisectoral collective led by the IHW Council launched earlier this year that will help the Government’s efforts to improve women’s health parameters in the worst-affected districts of India.
Initially, 150 volunteer obstetrics and gynaecologists will help women seeking advice in four languages, viz., Hindi, English, Kannada, and Tamil. The helpline, managed by StepOne, is accessible by dialling 9739693300 from anywhere in India, backed by 10-member core groups of COVID care and obstetrics and gynaecologists who will offer professional tele-help on COVID-19, mental health, advice on prevention and care to adolescents and reproductive women on anaemia, pregnancy care including nutrition, healthy lifestyle, and wellbeing, advice on infant care, vaccination and infant health issues, and food and nutrition to adolescents and women of all ages.