Working Hours : 10.15 am - 5.15pm
Queer Inclusive Health Systems Workshop
Queer Affirmative Counselling Practices
As a precursor to the Queer Inclusive Health Systems (QIHS) project being rolled out by the Department Of Health and Family Welfare, The State Health Systems Resource Centre – Kerala (SHSRC-K), in partnership with Mariwala Health Initiative (MHI), organized a training on Queer Affirmative Counselling Practices (QACP) from 3 rd to 5 th October 2024 for Bhoomika counsellors and Public Relation Officers from government hospitals across the state. This training, designed to promote inclusivity and sensitivity in mental health care, was an essential step toward building a more supportive ecosystem for LGBTQIA+ individuals in the state.
MHI representatives, Pooja Nair and Sruti Chakravarti, focused on providing mental health professionals with a deep understanding of queer affirmative practices, equipping them with the knowledge and skills to better serve queer individuals. Through a series of interactive workshops, expert-led sessions, and case studies, the participants gained practical tools for creating a safe, empathetic, and affirming space for their clients.
‘QUEER’ is an inclusive umbrella term used to represent all individuals within the LGBTIA+ community, embracing diverse sexual orientations, gender identities, and expressions. It serves as a unifying word for those who don't fit into traditional categories of gender or sexuality. The full form of LGBTQIA+ is L -Lesbian, G- Gay, B- Bisexual, T- Transgenders, Q- Queer, I – Intersex, A – Asexual and + - signifies the ever expanding and evolving areas of the very diverse gender and sexual identities QIHS aims to promote quality, inclusive health care for members from the marginalized queer community.
Queer Affirmative Counselling Practices
Stakeholder Workshop for development of online grievance redressal portal for trans & Intersex individual in Kerala
Stakeholder Workshop for development of online grievance redressal portal for trans & Intersex individual in Kerala
A stakeholder workshop was conducted on November 13, 2024, at the State Health Systems Resource Centre Kerala for the study titled ‘Development, Implementation, and Evaluation of a State Level Interactive Online Portal for monitoring, and addressing the health issues and grievances of Transgender and Intersex communities in Kerala: An Implementation Research’ . The main objective of the workshop was to present the qualitative findings from formative research and to discuss the development and implementation of the Health and Grievance Monitoring Portal for Transgender and Intersex Communities in Kerala. The meeting, which began at 10:30 am , brought together key stakeholders, including officials from the Directorate of Health Services (DHS), the National Health Mission (NHM), and the Digital University of Kerala (DUK), members of the Kerala Transgender Justice Board, Community Link Workers (CLWs), and Transgender and intersex community members. The meeting was helmed by Dr. V Jithesh, Executive Director, SHSRC-K along with Dr. Manju Madhavan, Research Officer, SHSRC-K, Dr. Rajasree Research SHSRC-K Assistant and Dr. Sruthi. V, Research Assistant, SHSRC-K.
The session began with a welcome speech and an introduction to the workshop by Dr. V Jithesh, Executive Director, SHSRC-K, followed by the project summary presented by Dr Manju Madhavan, Research Officer, SHSRC-K. Dr. Manju Madhavan also delivered a presentation on formative research findings which provided valuable insights into the challenges and needs of transgender and intersex communities, setting the stage for a focused discussion on the portal’s components. Mr. Umasankar, Senior Research Associate at DUK also shared the digital expertise, outlining the portal features. The group then engaged in a dynamic discussion on the portal's features, its operationalization, data protection and privacy, mandatory and non-mandatory details, roles for administrative and monitoring officers, user registration process, and ensuring gender affirmativeness.
Peer Support Practices (PSP) Training for Trans person Community Link Workers in Kerala
State Health Systems Resource Centre-Kerala (SHSRC-Kerala), in partnership with Mariwala Health Initiative (MHI) Mumbai, India, organized a three-day residential training on ‘Peer Support Practices (PSP)’ for building the competency of Transperson Community Link Workers (CLWs) in order to augment the functioning of Queer Inclusive Health Systems (QIHS) in Kerala. Community Link Workers from various districts, including Trivandrum, Kottayam, Malappuram, Thrissur, Kozhikode, and Ernakulam, were invitees for this training.
Dr. V. Jithesh, Executive Director of SHSRC-Kerala, opened the session with a brief overview of the concept of Queer Inclusive Health Systems, elaborated about MHI and its role in the programme, and provided an outline to the workshop's agenda. The sessions were handled by Dr. Shruti Chakravarty, Chief Advisor, MHI and Pooja Nair, both of whom are training faculties of Queer Affirmative Counselling Practices (QACP) at MHI.
The workshop commenced with concepts and activities focusing on principles, history and need of peer counselling, and worked around individual self-reflection and group discussions. During these sessions, the participants echoed their personal motivations for becoming peer supporters within the community, with the one-on-one role-playing activities helping them exercise, apply, and gain insights on bettering their community level as well as health system level engagement skills.
Peer Support Practices (PSP) Training for Trans person Community Link Workers in Kerala
The workshop concluded with sessions on suicide prevention and mental health training which equipped the participants with quintessential skills to support their peers effectively. Additionally, the CLWs provided feedback and suggestions on how to improve future workshops.
Smt. Seena KM, Head of Social Development, National Health Mission (NHM) addressed the participants with her encouraging and supportive words, while also extending her heart felt gratitude to the faculty from MHI, during the valedictory session.
Research Officers Dr. Manju Madhavan, Dr. Bhavya Fernandez, and Research Assistants, Dr. Rajasree S.J, Ms. Lavanya K, Dr. Shwetha Ashok and Ms. Aiswarya M.P were proactively involved in the conduct of this training workshop. Shakhiya S, Potential Consultant, from MHI provided active technical support throughout this programme.
Sensitisation Workshop for State level health department officials
Sensitisation Workshop for State level health department officials
State Health Systems Resource Centre-Kerala (SHSRC-Kerala), in collaboration with Mariwala Health Initiative (MHI), Mumbai, India, organized a two-day sensitization workshop for selected district-level officials from the Department of Health Services, Kerala. Held at SHSRC-Kerala, the workshop marked the commencement of the second phase in developing a ‘Queer Inclusive Health System (QIHS)’ in the state. This phase follows the Peer Support Practices (PSP) Training Workshop for Community Link Workers conducted the previous week.
The workshop, conducted on December 16 and 17, 2024, brought together officials from the Northern and Southern regions of Kerala, respectively. Attendees included District Medical Officers (DMOs), Resident Medical Officers (RMOs), District Nursing Officers (DNOs), Junior Administrative Medical Officers (JAMOs), Reproductive and Child Health Officers (RCHOs), Superintendents, Mother and Child Health officials, and Nursing Superintendents.
The workshop began with a Baseline Assessment to evaluate participants' understanding of queer health. Each day’s proceedings were inaugurated by Dr. V. Jitesh, Executive Director of SHSRC-K, and Dr. Seena KM, Head of Social Development at the National Health Mission (NHM), by emphasizing the significance of implementation of the State Policy for Transgender persons into the ambit of the Health Systems and providing an overview of the workshop's core themes, including the importance of working in close coordination with the Trans person Community Link Workers.
The subsequent sessions were facilitated by Dr. Shruti Chakravarty, Chief Advisor at MHI, and Pooja Nair, both esteemed trainers in Queer Affirmative Counselling Practices (QACP) at MHI. These sessions delved into the realities and challenges faced by the transgender community, incorporating group debates on topics such as the importance of gender-affirming surgeries and the harmful implications of misgendering and using dead names in interactions with transgender individuals. These discussions, as well as district wise charting of challenges, opportunities and additional support necessitated to bring about queer inclusive health systems offered valuable insights. The workshop also included a screening and discussion of the documentary film ‘That’s My Boy’, which portrays the journey of a transman.
In the valedictory, after the Endline assessment post training, Smt. Seena K.M., delivered an inspiring address, expressing deep appreciation for the efforts of the MHI faculty and their invaluable contributions. The training workshop was facilitated by Research Officers of SHSRC-K- Dr. Manju Madhavan and Dr. Bhavya Fernandez, along with the relentless support and hard work of Research Assistants Dr. Rajasree S.J., Ms. Lavanya K., Dr. Shwetha Ashok, Ms. Aiswarya M.P., and intern Ms. Shadiya Basheer KM. Technical support was provided throughout the programme by Shakhiya S, Potential Consultant, and Ahamed Fazariya, Consultant Training Associate from MHI.
