Centre to launch unified child healthcare programme today

NEW DELHI, JUN 28 (PTI): Centre will on Monday launch the Samagra Shishu Bal Swasthya Karyakram (SSBSK), a unified child healthcare programme introducing, for the first time, a risk-stratified approach with intensified follow-up for newborns and children identified as “at-risk”.
Union Health Minister JP Nadda will launch the programme at the 16th Conference of the Central Council of Health and Family Welfare at Vigyan Bhawan. SSBSK integrates the existing Home-Based Newborn Care and Home-Based Care for Young Child initiatives to provide a continuum of care from birth to 36 months.
Under the programme, newborns will receive up to nine home visits during the first 42 days of life, while at-risk children will receive up to eight home visits up to 36 months. Built around the vision of ‘Pehle Teen Saal Sampoorna Dekhbhal’, it recognises the importance of the first three years for child survival, nutrition, growth and early brain development.
The programme will strengthen continuity of care through joint home visits by Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs), Auxiliary Nurse Midwives (ANMs), Community Health Officers (CHOs) and Anganwadi Workers (AWWs). It will introduce Well-Baby Sessions at every Village Health, Sanitation and Nutrition Day (VHSND) and monthly Shishu Shivirs at Ayushman Arogya Mandirs for early identification, assessment and management of at-risk children.
SSBSK will incorporate post-partum maternal mental health screening, integrate nurturing care for Early Childhood Development (ECD) across home visits and community contacts, and promote responsive caregiving, early learning, age-appropriate play, child safety and family engagement.
The programme will leverage Decision-Support Systems (DSS), child-tracking applications, referral loops and alert mechanisms, aligned with the JANANI, U-WIN, MPCDSR and RBSK 2.0 portals and the POSHAN Tracker through ABHA and Baal-ABHA IDs. It will also address home-based care in urban areas through tailored strategies for slum, migrant and underserved populations.
The guidelines also promote age-appropriate play, physical activity and mental stimulation during the first three years while recognising the adverse impact of excessive screen time and reduced physical interaction on brain development, emotional health and social skills.