Achieving Sustainability Towards Healthcare Access (ASTHA) in Bangladesh
Novartis and Swisscontact initiated the ASTHA project in 2015. ASTHA (meaning reliance or trust in Bengali) offers health education on disease prevention and treatment, and increases access to quality healthcare by training and working with Community Paramedics (CPs) in three disaster-prone areas of Bangladesh.
The four-year project (2015-2018) takes a holistic approach to expanding access to healthcare by involving government agencies (i.e. BNC, DGFP and DGHS), building capacity within institutions to train CPs and informing people about the options regarding quality healthcare services. The project focuses on the following activities:
Referral system: CPs refer patients to qualified doctors to ensure treatment quality
Continuous education: roundtable discussions and scientific seminars are held on latest developments in therapeutic areas
Health camps: CPs and referral doctors provide primary healthcare services free of charge to underserved communities in healthcamps.
Stethoscope desk
