Centre launches mobile academy to upgrade ASHA's skill in Raj

In order to meet shortage of skilled medical staff at the ground level, the Centre has launched Mobile Academy here which offers a course via voice messaging for upgrading the medical and health skills of Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA).
ASHA, mostly local married women, brought in medical and health service stream in 2005-06 under National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) with five phrased training programme.
About 58000 ASHAs working across Rajasthan would get benefit of upgrading their medical and health skills through this Mobile Academy course.
Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) of Bundi, Suresh Jain said that for the registration in the Mobile Academy course, Centre has offered a toll free number (18003101704) where any ASHA can get registration for the course.

It is an eleven lessons voice messaging course with 44 questions, he said adding the course is free for the ASHAs registered in ASHA Soft, an online system which facilitates the department.
After completion of any of the eleven lessons, ASHA would be asked four questions and following answering them correctly, she would be promoted to next lesson, CMHO Jain said.

For qualifying the course, ASHA, after completing all eleven lesions, must attempt 44 questions and must obtain more than 50 per cent marks to get academy course certificate, Jain said.
This certificate would be issued by the Directorate, medical and health, he said and added it would help ASHA get priority for ANM course, PHC ASHA supervisor and for other government added schemes.

The course would also help meet the shortage of skilled medical staff at CHC and PHC level, Jain said adding qualified ASHA would also be able to better execute and handle the government plans and schemes at the ground level.
District ASHA Coordinator, Dharmendra Nirvikar said About 58000 ASHAs, working over a population of one thousand across Rajasthan would get benefit of upgrading their medical and health skills through the course.
Around 1008 ASHAs are working in Bundi district and most of them are very eager to get them registered for the course, he said adding we have started demonstrating about to Mobile Academy course to ASHAs in our area and they are very eager to join the same.