Community Health Volunteer, Lalitpur

Devaki KC, 43 is a Female Community Health Volunteer (FCHV) and looks after the needs of pregnant women and children under five in Dukuchhap VDC-8, Lalitpur District.

She educates pregnant women on antenatal care and postnatal care, early childhood care, child nutrition and encourages health check ups and vaccines moving in and around her village. She has helped many women and Manisha KC, 25 is one of them.

Manisha is the mother of healthy twin daughters, Ganga and Jamuna, both seven months old. Manisha shares, “I had a fair knowledge about pregnancy and safe motherhood, but Devaki was always there to guide me. Though I had a safe delivery, after two weeks I started bleeding heavily and my family members feared something would happen to me, but it was Devaki who came to my rescue and brought medicines from the local health post to cure me.”

Devaki has attended trainings on safe motherhood and child care organised by local partners with the support of Lalitpur ADP. She has been working as a FCHV for the last 20 years. At present, there are nine FCHVs in Dukuchhap VDC. Lalitpur ADP also initiated a basket fund for the FCHVs of Dukuchhap VDC four years back. Devaki and other FCHVs have been using this fund to improve their livelihoods.