Strengthening support mechanisms for Accredited Social Health Activists in order to improve home-based newborn care in Uttar Pradesh, India

Abstract

Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) are female frontline health workers that provide critical antenatal and postnatal support to mothers and newborns for over five million deliveries in Uttar Pradesh every year. Performance reviews of ASHAs showed that even after initial training, the quality and the numbers of home visits made by ASHA were inadequate. ASHAs lacked interpersonal communication and counseling skills to effectively negotiate behavior change for home-based newborn care. The health system lacked mechanisms for continued learning and periodic upgrading of their skills and knowledge. Post-training, ASHAs were not being adequately supervised.