Achievements

Between 1995 and 2002, the DISH Project designed and implemented multi-channel communication interventions promoting a variety of health practices among individuals, households and communities. During the first five years of DISH I, and the first year of DISH II, the BCC Component implemented a series of nine multi-channel campaigns that included centrally produced print, radio, and video materials coupled with locally designed and implemented mobilization and sensitization activities. During 2001 and 2002, the project moved more toward marketing services and service providers, with localized communication strategies that combined service delivery and communication interventions.

As new campaigns and marketing interventions were launched, the project continued to remind audiences of messages from previous campaigns through its centerpiece radio series, videos, and "Health Matters" newsletters.

DISH BCC interventions have supported and promoted a variety of health practices: family planning, safer sex among youth, proper management of sexually transmitted diseases, antenatal care, health facility delivery, voluntary HIV counseling and testing, breastfeeding and infant nutrition, immunization, malaria prevention and treatment, and male involvement in family planning.

To identify health facilities providing antenatal, postnatal, family planning, STD, immunization, and HIV/AIDS counseling services, the project worked closely with the Ministry of Health Reproductive Health Division to develop the rainbow over the yellow flower symbol for family health services in 1997. The symbol is now known by more than three quarters of men and women in Uganda.

Specifically, the component:

• Developed media materials and, through subgrants to the 12 districts, supported the implementation of community mobilization activities for reproductive, maternal and child health practices.
• Worked with the district health services and other partner organizations to organize innovative entertainment-education activities such as the Hits for Hope music contest for youth, the Nze N'owange community radio programme, bicycle rallies, soccer tournaments, music contests, community drama tours, and school drama contests.
• Designed, produced, and broadcast radio programmes for a variety of audiences: youth, rural men and women, and urban parents.
• Produced and distributed 14 issues of Health Matters newsletters in 3 languages covering a variety of health topics. Over 7 years, more than 7 million copies were distributed as inserts in newspapers, through health facilities and during community events.
• Assisted the districts to train Parish Development Committees, community resource persons, and adolescent peer educators to provide community based services including growth monitoring and promotion, immunization, Vitamin A supplementation, malaria treatment for children, and referrals for clinic based services.
• Designed, produced, and distributed support materials for counseling and client education such as anatomical models, flipcharts, cue cards, and videos such as "Caring Completely" and "Seven Family Planning Methods."
• Encouraged better quality of care among health workers through quarterly "Health Worker" newsletters, self-instructional manual on client-friendly maternal health services, up-date orientations to voluntary HIV counseling and testing, growth monitoring and promotion, and immunization. The project also worked closely with the Ministry of Health, WHO, UNICEF and the Malaria Consortium to prepare orientation materials on the malaria drug policy and for the introduction of new vaccines.
• Produced a 13-part dramatic television/video series and the 4-part Time to Care video drama series on family planning, safe motherhood, STDs, HIV, malaria, infant nutrition, immunisations, sanitation, and quality of care.
• Assisted the Ministry of Health to produce a logo and communication support materials and organize district orientations for leaders and service providers for the Yellow star Programme.
• Sponsored four Communication Specialists and eight District Health Educators to attend international training courses in health communication and advocacy.
• Established an Ugandan non-government organization to continue providing expertise in behaviour change communication called the Communication for Development Foundation Uganda (CDFU).

The DISH Project received three international awards for excellence in health communication: the 1997 Global Media Award for Best Team Effort to produce a dramatic radio series "Choices"; the 1999 New York Festival Globals Finalist Award for the HIV Counseling and Testing multi-media campaign; and the 1999 Global Media Award for Best Population Publication for the 1998 family planning issue of the newsletter "Health Matters."