Village Health and Sanitation Committees: evaluation of a capacity-building intervention in Bagalkot and Koppal districts of Northern Karnataka

Introduction Engaging the community in planning and monitoring of health service delivery is central to enhancing the availability, accessibility, quality, and use of the public health system. The National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) has positioned community ownership as central to its strategy, primarily through the Village Health and Sanitation Committee (VHSC). The VHSCs are village-level bodies comprised of key stakeholders in a village and serve as a forum for village planning and monitoring. VHSCs were formed (1) to ensure that no section of the village community is excluded from services, (2) to prepare a village health plan to suit local realities and necessities, (3) to provide monitoring and oversight to all village health activities; and (4) to ensure that untied funds are appropriately used for improving maternal and neonatal health in the village. There have been few efforts in the health sector that effectively evaluated the relevance and need of community participation to improve health at the village level. The Karnataka Health Promotion Trust (KHPT) carried out a 2-year capacitybuilding project to strengthen VHSCs in Bagalkot and Koppal districts during 2009-2011 and attempted an evaluation of project outcomes.