The dream of Patient support group (PSG) in Junga Panchayat, Himachal, India had focus on health. We have set up PSGs in a large number of villages and have used CLCP and SALT in 14 villages. Each PSG is composed of patients with diabetes and hypertension, their families and village leaders, health workers and other stakeholders.

PSG wanted a village, which was green, clean and healthy. This is what came up during the dream building session, which I had facilitated. I got busy in…

We walked in single file because of the narrow path leading to the end of the short ‘panhandle’. Brush was overlapping the path so much that we had to push them aside with our hands. It was a lovely morning in Eijsden.  It is a custom [level 5]  that we engage with walking in the morning during the period of our FtF engagement. Laurie, who was walking in front of me, picked up a piece of paper. I began to wonder…

Earlier people used to not share their deep concerns and personal issues. We listened to their stories and helped them find their strengths. We were able to create a good environment and they found the conversation useful. No one got up from group meetings because everyone had the desire to do something and gave their time for the meeting.People realised that they are for each other and they have to jointly find a solution. 

We work with communities on the issue of diabetes…

A SALT village after our hearts...where a young husband ensures that his wife has her Ante Natal check up (ANC)...and so does a conscientious Mother in Law...two different generations bridged by the SALT approach and exemplary instances of male involvement and family concern for girls and women...an Aanganwadi Centre (AWC) throbbing with energy and exuberance where the responses of chirpy tots are a clear indicator of an enterprising and responsible Aanganwadi worker (AWW)...…

As the Sun beat down on us on a hot, sultry summer afternoon...the women in Jongakhali village in Kamrup district of Assam, were in turns shy and reticent, but it took a few moments for the reticence to change to expressions and words and confidence...as they admitted that they have dreams, but are wary to share them...they proudly show off…

In our project on diabetes and hypertension, Patient support groups through CLCP made an action plan. Villagers in Dhanot, Himachal have begun to do yoga every morning from 6 am to 6:30 am.

In the below picture, people went for diabetes and…

For a practitioner of SALT and CLCP, our work does not finish with facilitating action plan, accompaniment of the community in taking action is critical. This is my learning in our Assam project in India where we are stimulating community response to immunization, WASH and nutrition.

In Hirajani community, water supply is a major issue and the community is getting frustrated as in spite of a lot of effort and applications to the government they have not been able to…

Its been 8 years ago when two facilitators of IndoCompetence were invited by  National Family Planning (FP) Board to present FP Competence.  The discussion was postponed since the senior officer we talked  with was retired.  Two three times after that, IndoCompetence (Dewi, me and Tuti) were invited to present our approach to program person or pool of trainers  of the institution.

This year, February, one of FP Officer in West Java who were invited to attend SALT and CLCP workshop on…

SALT Group from Dhanoth village.

About 12 Stakeholder attended the SALT action plan meeting at Dhanoth village. This is patient support group for those with diabetes and hypertension. In this meeting people came from the different area also included the village Pradhan, frontline health worker, ASHAs, Ward member and patient of diabetes and hypertension. After the dream building, the action plan was made. e.g. They have decided the date for plantation third…

Summer time and the living is easy, that’s how the old song goes.  Well, one thing that was not so easy is to gather enough participants for a 2.5 half day SALT initiation training in English.

However, nothing is lost.  Together with Radmila, the creator of Generation Why Not?  (Check out the Facebook site here) we decided to give a 1-Day…

Background: Under the HealthRise project, Catholic Health Association of India (CHAI) is facilitating SALT and community life competence process for strengthening patient centred approach in the state of Rajasthan, India. As part of this project, the CHAI team has set up patient support groups and we are using SALT so that the groups can own the issue of diabetes and hypertension and take action. Technical inputs: Dr Sameer and story credit: Asha, Brinda and Sharad.

I want …

Dream building 21st May 2018 Village Barog

About 10 stakeholders like village Pradahn, ASHA etc met for dream building. The best thing says Ramesh was that for the first time they want to do something for the village. After dream building action plan was made. They will celebrate NCD day on 15th June. They have divided duties- Health worker and AWW will organise the meeting in subcentre. Pradhan will distribute…

The very first time i saw the Dancing Jajas from As You Open Your Eyes (AYOYE) video i was in awe. I was caught in this whirlpool of ideas and emotions; all that I could do with this one gem of a video, all the people it could reach and all the emotions it aroused in me. Having myself been a facilitator for the AYOYE team here in Mauritius I couldn’t help but think,…

Guyana celebrates its 52nd Independence celebrations. Youth week engagement included schools who celebrated in several different ways. Bernice Edwards a teacher of grade 8 students in response to students interest in future careers and the fact that from Grade 9 class they begin to stream into career choices wanted to engage students in an interactive way so that conversation on career choice is stimulating to them.…

Dearest Constellation friends

As you know, our awesome Visual Development couple David & Jessica have been working very hard for several months now to bring you the first-born of a series of documentary episodes called As You Open Your Eyes…

The first episode, Dancing Jajas, centers around the jajas of HENU…

If I were to rate the most powerful moments of my work with communities, then Knowledge Fair in Assam would stand out. It was messy, confusing at times but very enriching and a delight to one who believes that communities can do things for themselves. In Assam, for the past one year we have been working in 90 villages in 3 districts with two organisations- VHAA and CNES. During the Knowledge fair we organised four events in April end. We did one event each in the three districts and the…

(This blog is by Asha Meghwal, Outreach worker, Block Jhadol from Medtronic Foundation funded, Abt Associates supported and implemented by Catholic Health Association of India (CHAI) in Udaipur, India. The HealthRise project is using SALT and CLCP for patient centred approach to Diabetes and hypertension. Asha is a SALT facilitator whose blog I translated into English. Asha is very strong in documentation. Thank you Asha for sharing! Photo courtesy Asha who is sitting on the left…

Uganda GLF, October 2017.

 As part of the “market place”, Belcompetence has chosen to showcase a few tools different facilitators have been experimenting with and which may be relevant to strengthen our practice of SALT/CLCP. One such tool is called the “mandala of our truths”, and it is part of something called “deep ecology”, and specifically…

Version Française à la suite du texte anglais.

During the month of April 2018, Loli, Luc and Sophie Piquemal were invited to meet various associations of a city in the suburbs of Paris (France), Les Mureaux. That invitation aimed at investigating to what extent the Constellation could collaborate with a local initiative of "Mieux vivre ensemble" (…

Phayao, November 2017. “Let us go and support khun Moon,”says our friend Suwat to khun Saowanee, Anu and I. “He has stopped using chemicals on his land and has to deal with a lot of resistance from his fellow villagers.” Moon and his wife welcome us in front of their modest house. Lots of chicken run around among a luxuriant vegetation. In front of the house a fish pond opens the view toward a mountain range.…