Smartphones to support posyandu activities

Yustina Stevania is a cadre of Bangboler Integrated Health Post (Posyandu) in Hepang Village, Sikka District, in East Nusa Tenggara Province. Yustina became a health cadre in September 2014.

She joined a focus group on a the new Commcare app, an application used by growth monitoring and counselling officers in the Posyandu activities.

"I am glad Posyandu cadres use a mobile phone. A mobile phone is easy for showing children's nutrition status."

With the availability of a smartphone, Yustina can directly input the children's weight data into the app, and it will quickly analyze whether the children are in the green, yellow, or red zones- indicating a child's nutrition status according to weight and age.

The smartphone will help cadre like Yustina to judge children growth status more precisely.

Besides Bangboler Posyandu, Hepang Village has three other Posyandus: Napungliti 1, Napungliti 2, and Rohot. The four Posyandus have started to monitor children growth using mobile phones in December 2014.

Gusta, mother of a two-year-old, attends the Bangboler Posyandu and gladly waits the health results. Gusta, the elementary school teacher, says, "I am glad Posyandu cadres use a mobile phone. A mobile phone is easy for showing children's nutrition status."

Gusta adds that the app has guidelines that will help cadre in supporting families, especially guidance if children are not willing to eat, have low weight, or have general problems with their nutrition.

Midwife Getrudis, a midwife who supervises Bangboler Posyandu, evaluates the Posyandu activity with other cadres at the end of the activity.

*Written by Hermince Brikmar, Maternal Health and Child Nutrition Coordinator, Wahana Visi Indonesia at Sikka operational office