Abstract

PIP: Government of India statistics indicate that about 3 million of New Delhi's 11 million people live in slums, while another 3 million people, most fleeing rural poverty, are expected to migrate to the capital by 2000. ASHA Community Health and Development Society is a nongovernmental organization currently working in 23 of India's slums, serving a population of about 150,000 people. The group has pioneered the use of community-based networks in New Delhi to improve health in the poorest communities. While ASHA has a small, full-time staff, most of the daily health care work is conducted by slum volunteers. Ekta Vihar is a slum community of 1800 residents. Community members' primary source of health care are Vimla Rana and Sobha, two illiterate women who reside in the community and are part of a team of community health workers trained by ASHA. Rana and Sobha deliver almost all of the babies born annually in the slum and care for community members when they become ill.