Bihar Innovation Lab

15/04/2016

What is the internet doing to rural Bihar? Our conversations with officials across Bihar.

CARE India BBC Media Action UNICEF India Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

10/02/2016

The Lab's busy getting ready for Health Public - Patna Edition. The theme for this convening is 'the role and future of health systems innovation in the state of Bihar'.

We have an exciting day planned, stay tuned for more!

15/01/2016

The ANM Workstation reaches its end user the - the ANM. Pictures from Darbhanga where these ANMs were oriented with our product. True to its principles, the Lab follows a user-centered approach to training end users as well. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation CARE India BBC Media Action

15/01/2016

Check out World Health Organization (WHO)'s Practical Guide for the Design, Use and Promotion of Home-Based Records in Immunization Programmes:

http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/175905/2/WHO_IVB_15.05_eng.pdf

We've been reading through as we design a new Health Card for Bihar!

11/12/2015

Did you know that, 78% of children in Bihar, between 6-59 months of age, are anemic?*

Minister Health and Minister Women and Child Development launched the India Health Report: Nutrition 2015 yesterday. Interesting times as we gear up for some work on Nutrition in Bihar.



*Source: RSoC, 2014

15/10/2015

Collectively imagining futures of rural India.
Read more about our work co-creating with the Government of Bihar.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Ministry of Health & Family Welfare-Government of India UNICEF UNICEFinnovation USAID - US Agency for International Development

For an ‘Innovation Lab’ to sustain, it is necessary for the Lab to function in an environment that welcomes innovation and shuns traditional thinking. The Bihar Innovation Lab has not only innovated for Public Health, but also carefully crafted an ecosystem of innovation in Bihar for the sustenance…

07/10/2015

We love reading posts like this! Trevor Mundel, President of Global Health at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation talks about Innovation (and the lack of a perfect definition)!

The Supreme Court famously said of po*******hy that it’s hard to define but you know it when you see it. In science, we have our share of words that behave the same way.

25/09/2015

http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/09/the-women-who-keep-nepal-healthy/406810/

"In the decades since the program began, maternal mortality rates in Nepal have declined. They nearly halved between 1996 and 2006. Childhood mortality rates are also on the downswing. For children under five years of age, mortality was 54 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2001, down from 61 five years earlier."

The country's female community-health-volunteer program has been highly effective at helping those who live far from clinics and hospitals—but could still use some improvement

23/09/2015

http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/toi-edit-page/midwifing-efficient-healthcare-establish-regulatory-mechanisms-to-monitor-the-cost-and-quality-of-indias-health-system/

Midwifing Efficient Healthcare in India

Devi Shetty has recently argued in these columns (September 10) how red tape is strangling the health system in India and is not allowing simple interventions which can transform healthcare to happen. Without belittling his...

20/09/2015

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/sunday-times/all-that-matters/To-fix-social-problems-invest-in-human-beings-not-tech-magic-Kentaro-Toyama/articleshow/49027394.cms

Kentaro Toyama, former head of Microsoft Research India, on why the use of technology will further a good hospital's life-saving mission, but won't improve a bad hospital.

Kentaro Toyama came here in 2004 to start Microsoft Research India, excited at the prospect of transforming a developing country through digital solutions for social problems such as poor healthcare, education and poverty.

18/09/2015

http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/09/ben-carson-donald-trump-republican-presidential-debate-vaccine-autism-science-government/405901/

"Informing people about vaccines, and trying to expose misconceptions, can backfire. One study showed that people were actually less likely to get a flu shot after being told it does not cause the flu."

It's hard to fight ideology with facts.

15/09/2015

http://ns.umich.edu/new/releases/23118-rural-children-in-india-have-better-immunization-rates

"Children in rural India have higher vaccination rates than those in cities..."

ANN ARBOR—Children in rural India have higher vaccination rates than those in cities, and Hindu kids are more likely to get their shots than Muslim youth, say University of Michigan researchers. The

07/09/2015

Do we have a point of view on this post shared by our long-time friend and mentor Arvind Lodaya?

Every year another group of do-gooders with the latest gadget, software or app, presents a pilot project that will prove how smartphones, drones or social media are going to change the developing world. Few of these solutions stick.

26/08/2015

Honorable Union Health Minister, Shri JP Nadda writes on the relentless efforts India is putting forth to successfully minimize child and maternal deaths. A vow that multiple development agenies across countries have taken to advocate safe pregnancy and delivery. This piece is quite informative and encouraging.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/analysis/india-renewing-commitment-to-end-child-and-maternal-deaths/article1-1384183.aspx

India has robust policies, cost effective and high-impact strategies and health interventions, and strong partnerships in place to ensure that our interventions reach all the women, newborns and young children who need them and improve health outcomes nationwide.

10/08/2015

UPDATE: Due to some unforeseen circumstances, Health Public has been postponed to a later date. We will keep you posted about the new details!

In the meantime take a look at a labnote our team developed :) Happy Monday!
http://bit.ly/1IDtS99

30/07/2015

Rohan Jain Any solutions?

A reporter goes undercover to see how women are treated in a large government facility in Kolkata.

20/07/2015

The team recently wrapped up a fruitful visit to Bihar where they interacted with health officials for a feedback session at the State RMNCH+A and later explained the functionality of the Kit to the Medical Officer in Charge in the district of Aurangabad. Both visits translated into a lot of support and encouragement from these officials.