Experience of the Organisation

• PDI implemented a DFID funded project -RCSHA w.e.f 16th June 2005 in collaboration with AC Nielsen ORG MARG and OPTIONS to strengthen the national capacity to respond effectively to sexual health related issues in India.
• PDI has specific experience of working with various systems to strengthen the national capacity to respond effectively to sexual health related issues in India. PDI during SHRC and RCSHA has worked on numerous and wide ranging activities. PDI has been involved in conducting evaluation and monitoring studies since the project period of SHRC and RCSHA for various partners and stakeholders like WHO, NACO & SACS. This also involves work with some of India’s premier institutions.
• PDI is built around a small core staff but a large extended family of members, who can be drawn on as and when needed as advisors or as implementers. The organisation has been formed by a group of people, who have extensive experience of working with a wide range of players and clients including independent consultants, Indian NGOs, International NGOs, State Management Agencies, DFIDI, FHI, USAID, UNAIDS and NACO, other developmental ministries etc,. The members have also worked with a wide range of management structures, including implementation units, and service providers in the HIV/AIDS sector in India. The core team is made up of the same members who were key to the management of SHRC and RCSHA.

Activities:

Paediatric Fixed dose combination (FDC) study for NACO and WHO conducted during the last quarter of 2007. The objective of this study was to document the experience of implementation and acceptability of pediatric Fixed Dose Combinations (FDCs) and to demonstrate their impact on clinical treatment of children. PDI was able to complete the data collection and analysis of 419 medical records, in-depth interviews and focus group discussions at 6 ART centres and postal questionnaire from 120 ART centres in the short time available.

Targeted Intervention Profiling Study (TIPS) was conducted during the period Nov 2006 – June 2007. The objective was to profile the existing Targeted Interventions on Technical, Managerial and Financial parameters and develop a pool of trained consultants across the country that could be a potential resource pool for SACS and NACO during NACP III. The study covered a total of 138 TIs in 12 states. This was a follow-up of an earlier study where 54 TIs across the country were sampled for a detailed evaluation of the TI programme and from which a costing guideline was developed for NACO.

MITWA Project of DSACs (aided by NACO)-The study assessed the effectiveness of a mobile health care programme in Delhi. The mobile van visited densely populated areas and provided comprehensive services on RCH, MCH and HIV/AIDS. The aim was to study how the initiative could be strengthened and scaled up.

PDI during the period of managing RCSHA has also been involved in capacity building efforts of physicians in HIV care /treatment. In this context, it has worked closely with CMC Vellore, Indian Association for the Study of Sexually Transmitted Diseases and AIDS and Indian Medical Association. Mention here may be made of the evaluation study of fellowship in HIV Medicine (CMC Vellore), Physicians

Training Initiative (Clinton Foundation), AOGD STI workshops for Obstetricians & Gynaecologists among other programmes conducted.

The FHM evaluation was conducted during the period of March - May 06 in the states of Maharashtra, Delhi, Kerala, Tamilnadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. FHM is a one year fellowship programme which has tried to build capacity of health care providers to be able to address issues on health care and HIV and AIDS. It has been ongoing for four years and evaluation of it helped in understanding its strengths and limitations.

Monitoring and evaluation of the Physicians Training Initiative was conducted during the period – May 06- March 07. This Clinton Foundation Initiative along with Indian Medical Association trained around 35,000 physicians across eight DFID focus states. The aim was to sensitize the participating physicians on issues related to HIV/ AIDS prevention and treatment and provide a better understanding on opportunistic infection treatment, enabling comprehensive clinical care of individuals who are HIV positive.

AOGD workshops on STIs for Obstetricians & Gynaecologists were conducted during the period January to March 2007. This course has been designed to meet some of the practical clinical challenges that O&G specialists face when diagnosing and managing STIs. The workshops conducted have enabled the participants to get an insight on issues faced by O&G specialists for diagnosing and managing STI’s in their daily practice.

SHRC & RCSHA has also conducted STI prevalence surveys among various high-risk groups in Gujarat. Such studies were carried out amongst men having sex with men in Vadodara (2004), Surat (2005) and Rajkot (2006); and amongst female sex workers in Ahmedabad (2003), Vadodara (2004) and Rajkot (2006). In Ahmedabad, two rounds of STI prevalence studies were conducted among MSM and transgenders- in 2004 & 2006.

The goal of these studies was to provide a baseline measurement or trend data of STI prevalence among high-risk populations to understand the impact of the programme and for effective planning of STI/ HIV control programme. PDI has directly worked with ILO, UNFPA, WHO, UNDP and through the RCSHA project with many of the key players in the HIV field.

PDI has a demonstrated track record in capacity building and training in HIV clinical management as well as sensitizing various stakeholders to bring a comprehensive and systematic response to the HIV issues. It has conducted evaluation and monitoring studies with different partners and stakeholders. We believe we will be able to carry out an in-depth assessment and develop documentation to help in replicating and expanding this initiative.

AREAS OF CONSULTING ENGAGEMENTS

a) SECTORAL

• Policy formulation
• Sector development strategy
• Sector Reforms
• Long term planning
• Resource mapping
• Institutional and Organizational Development
• Sector finances and strategy
• Inter-sector linkages
• Sector output pricing where relevant
• Water Supply and sanitation
• Environment and Forestry
• Energy

b) FUNCTIONAL

• Strategy formulation
• Organization restructuring and development
• Evaluation of systems, design of systems and implementation
• Industry strategy formulation
• Project management
• Institutional Strengthening