Community Mobilisation and Incentivisation for Child Health in Rural Pakistan
Author Information
Author(s): Das Jai K, Salam Rehana A, Padhani Zahra Ali, Rizvi Arjumand, Mirani Mushtaq, Jamali Muhammad Khan, Chauhadry Imran Ahmed, Sheikh Imtiaz, Khatoon Sana, Muhammad Khan, Bux Rasool, Naqvi Anjum, Shaheen Fariha, Ali Rafey, Muhammad Sajid, Cousens Simon, Bhutta Zulfiqar A
Primary Institution: Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan
Hypothesis
Can a community mobilisation and incentivisation strategy improve child health outcomes in rural Pakistan?
Conclusion
The study found that community mobilisation and incentivisation significantly improved child health outcomes, including vaccination rates and sanitation practices.
Supporting Evidence
- Community mobilisation and incentivisation led to a higher proportion of fully immunised children.
- Use of oral rehydration solution increased significantly in the incentivisation group.
- The sanitation index improved in the community mobilisation and incentivisation group compared to the control group.
- Community-driven incentives resulted in a 36% cost-sharing from the community.
- Serial evaluations showed that all clusters in the incentivisation group met the targets for incentive eligibility.
Takeaway
This study shows that when communities work together and are rewarded for improving health, more children get vaccinated and stay healthy.
Methodology
A three-arm cluster-randomised controlled trial was conducted in rural Pakistan, comparing community mobilisation, community mobilisation with incentivisation, and a control group.
Potential Biases
Potential biases may arise from self-reported data and the lack of blinding for participants.
Limitations
The study focused on specific outcomes and may not be generalizable to other contexts; further studies are needed to evaluate long-term sustainability.
Participant Demographics
The study included children younger than 5 years from 48 clusters in rural Pakistan, with a total population of approximately 139,005.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.05
Confidence Interval
95% CI 1.0–1.5
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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