KOCHI: The National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) is all set to launch ‘Teenage Clubs’ in colleges in the district. The programme will be modelled on the lines of the School Health Programme of the NRHM.In the first phase, the programme will be launched in five colleges in the district. Under the programme, each college will be allotted Rs 10,000. The clubs will act as an interface between the college students and the Health Department. The clubs will be formed in association with the NSS units of the colleges. Students will be asked to enroll in the clubs on a voluntary basis. Sessions will be organised periodically by doctors, health workers and other experts. Screening programmes and one-to-one counselling sessions are the major thrusts of the programme.“The teenagers in colleges are left completely untargeted. In the counselling sessions that were carried out, it was found that there is a huge demand for such clubs. Though there is a vast amount of information available to them, there is hardly any guidance. So the students do not know what information to choose and what not,” said Ernakulam District NRHM Officer Dr K V Beena.The clubs will have representatives from various student bodies and teachers. The working of the club will be on the model of a one-year programme with sessions every month. Each session will look at specific aspects of health, including nutrition, disease control, personal hygiene, reproductive health and even career guidance. Apart from the sessions organised by the NRHM, the students will also be encouraged to organise events. The first phase will begin in June with five selected colleges from the district. The Cochin Gynaec Society and Indian Academy of Paediatrics will be roped in for the project.
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