Duration
2017 onwards
Key Partners
MoHFW, State Governments,
Development Partners
Funder
Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance
One of the significant components of the Health Systems Strengthening grant from Gavi to the Government of India (GoI) for improving immunization during 2017–2021 was the capacity building of human resources engaged in the immunization program. The GoI identified JSIPL as the nodal agency and lead partner to provide technical assistance for the RISE project. The mandate was to identify the needs, develop a training platform to complement the existing training mechanism, and roll it out in pilot districts across five states.
RISE, an innovative training platform leveraging digital technology, was conceptualized, designed, and prepared for vaccinators. Over the last four years, the RISE model has been implemented in 36 districts, training over 14,000 frontline health workers engaged in immunization. It has demonstrated improved immunization knowledge, enhancing the quality of immunization programs, covering a population of over 50 million by the end of 2021.
To develop a human-centered, interactive, continuous, and adaptable knowledge and skill-building platform for health workers engaged in the Universal Immunization Program (UIP).
To complement the existing classroom-based cascade training for health workers by leveraging digital technologies for faster, easier, and more effective knowledge transfer.
As a first step toward building the RISE package, a comprehensive Capacity Building Needs Assessment (CBNA) was conducted to identify gaps in the immunization training scenario. A technology scoping exercise assessed the readiness of learners to use digital technology as a mode of training. Though the existing “Immunization Handbook for Health Workers,” approved by GoI, was used as the primary resource material for developing RISE content, observations of CBNA guided the team to prioritize content through a consultative process of relevant stakeholders. A Learning Management System (LMS) was developed to deliver training modules through cell phones, tabs, and computers.
The RISE app was launched at the national level in December 2019. The pilot phase was rolled out in five districts in five states covering about 2500 vaccinators during 2020. It was later scaled up in another 33 districts across three states, covering 12,000 vaccinators. A completion rate of over 80% was seen with positive deviance among trained vaccinators in their knowledge and practices during immunization sessions.
RISE is a good example of innovation with the potential to turn into a long-term program. Its success has encouraged the Government of India to take it up for a broader scale-up.
The platform will also be leveraged through updated content regularly with training on other health topics such as COVID-19 vaccination.