‘We create change agents’
- We work to empower women and slum communities to be catalysts of change
- We work in close partnerships with existing systems to create sustainable change
i) with the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai to improve the quality of perinatal care ii) with the Intergrated Child Development Scheme to improve nutrition in children from the slums iii) with private health practitioners to standardize quality of maternal and newborn care - We facilitate behavior change through Appreciative Inquiry. Using AI we have worked with over 30 health facilities and more than 1000 people.
Dr. Armida Fernandez, the founder of SNEHA, in her tenure as the dean of Sion Hospital
realized that the pregnant women who come to the facility for treatment need more than just
medicines; they need empathy and a listening ear for all the distress they face in life. She
chose to do something about it instead of being bogged down by the enormity and complexity
of the task. Thus was born SNEHA meaning love in Sanskrit.
Appreciative Inquiry (AI) begins with the belief that we have a choice - which we can
consciously choose (in the Gestalt sense) what we "see" and act upon. In both the personal
and social realms, we can choose to focus on problems, needs and deficits - the traditional
problem-solving approach. Or we can choose to see possibilities, capabilities and assets - the
basis of AI.
SNEHA believes in possibilities and this belief translates itself into working with the existing
structures in the field of health and nutrition to make a difference to society. AI has become
the core philosophy at SNEHA, a way of being and a way of facilitating change. It’s also
highly participatory and democratic both of which encourage ownership and sustainability.
Our core values of Trust, Commitment, Excellence, Nurture and Valuing every person are an
extension of the way we are in our work relationships.
SNEHA uses AI successfully in building rapport and working with the slum communities,
building and strengthening collaborations and multi-sectoral partnerships. The use of AI has
greatly contributed towards the initial formation as well as the sustained interest in group
participation, and behavior change in 200 slum women’s groups.
In over 40 health care facilities (both Health Posts and Maternity Homes) covering more than
1000 staff it created the energy towards a movement for Quality Health Care Delivery, which
included standardization of care, adopting clinical protocols, better communication with staff
and clients as well as a functional referral system for patient care.
5-D Process
- The Definition Phase is when the goals and strategies for participation are clarified, which helps frame the questions of inquiry.
- The Discovery Phase is when participants develop an understanding of exceptional moments of when they were performing optimally and learn to allow those life-giving forces to flourish.
- The Dream Phase is when participants create shared images of what their group would look and feel like in the future.
- The Design Phase is when participants develop the details of whatever changes are thought to be needed, charting the course forward.
- The Delivery Phase is when participants implement the preferred future images created during the Dream Phase using the work done in the Design Phase.
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