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Socio-structural Factors in Functioning of Women Health Workers: A Study of Frontline Workers in Hardoi District of Uttar Pradesh

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Abstract

The frontline health workers, majorly women, play very important role in improving health statistics of rural India as they work in resource-poor condition and yet deliver the health services to needy. Working in a close community is not an easy job as many a time they have to choose the appropriate needy, without having rational choice. The health system is as much hierarchical as the Indian society; both do not allow the women health workers outside of the system. There are several structural and social factors that guide their working, and hence their functioning. The present paper is based on primary data conducted for PhD thesis. It tries to understand the challenges frontline women health workers go through, thereby identifying the structural and social barriers. For the study, ANMs and ASHAs across social groups were selected.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    A small settlement situated at the outskirts of village.

  2. 2.

    Vulnerable caste here is used in context of gender. Local people talk in the terms of caste and women too are considered as one caste on opposite to man. So here the respondent wanted to say that they are from a vulnerable group as they are women and men are stronger in the patriarchal caste hierarchy.

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Correspondence to Sonia Verma .

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Verma, S., Acharya, S.S. (2019). Socio-structural Factors in Functioning of Women Health Workers: A Study of Frontline Workers in Hardoi District of Uttar Pradesh. In: Panneer, S., Acharya, S., Sivakami, N. (eds) Health, Safety and Well-Being of Workers in the Informal Sector in India. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-8421-9_20

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