Performance assessment of Accredited Social Health Activists under National Urban Health Mission in Bengaluru

Abstract

ObjectivesTo assess the performance of “Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA)” under National Urban Health Mission (NUHM) in Bengaluru. The NUHM renews and deepens the commitment and recognizes that ASHA and Mahila Arogya Samiti (MAS) are critical components towards achieving health outcomes. There has not been a systematic approach to assess their performance and this study is the first of its kind in Bengaluru City. MethodsThe study was conducted in Bengaluru among 130 ASHAs selected using Stratified Random Sampling. A pretested semi-structured questionnaire was used to interview ASHA regarding her work (involving Antenatal Care (ANC) registrations, institutional delivery, home visits, immunization, sterilization, management of childhood illness, attending monthly meetings, etc.) and tracking the incentives that she had received for work in the past one year from the database. ResultsThe mean age of 130 study participants was 36.4 ± 6.4 years. 53.8% of the study participants had scored >75% for their performance and categorized as Grade A. Out of 130 study participants, 30 (23%) had maintained the record of their claim sheets of the incentives received and among which 26.7% had received 75–100% of incentive of their work. ConclusionThe present study concluded that majority of study participants had a good performance and had been categorized as Grade A. Very small percentage of study participants maintained their records. Financial incentives and an opportunity for more exposure to health services were the main reasons among the study participants for joining as an ASHA. They received induction training before joining work, but refresher training was inadequate.