Landscaping and Understanding the Private Sector Market of Pregnancy-Related Supplements in Urban and Rural Rajasthan
The study’s primary objective was to landscape and develop an understanding of the private sector market of pregnancy-related supplements in urban and rural Rajasthan. Considering information points from supply and demand ends became critical to address this objective. The following questions guided the research:
- What are the roles of private sector health care providers (Registered Medical Practitioners (RMPs), qualified, unqualified, Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy (AYUSH), traditional midwives, etc.) and suppliers (chemists, wholesalers, distributors, etc.) in providing services to pregnant women in an urban and rural context?
- What challenges, barriers, and facilitators do private sector providers face in this context?
- What are the different supply factors that influence pregnancy supplements in Rajasthan?
- What are the private sector care providers’ knowledge, attitude, and behaviors concerning pregnancy supplements?
- What are the distribution pathways for the supply of pregnancy supplements?
Sambodhi undertook the task of conducting the entire study through data collection, analysis, and synthesis. Firstly, Sambodhi’s evaluation team conducted desk reviews at the inception stage, finalized the research methodology, sampled the design, and prepared a detailed inception report. Here, the evaluators concluded tools for qualitative data collection. This process was undertaken in consultation with the CHAI team. An inception report detailing the full contextual research protocol was also developed.
After the inception phase, a qualitative data collection exercise was performed. The tool for this quantitative data collection was developed based on these findings. Data analysis from the research phases was triangulated to map various private sector health care providers for pregnancy-related care in rural and urban Rajasthan. This data also facilitated an in-depth understanding of the private sector market of pregnancy-related supplements in urban and rural Rajasthan.