Swasti started out as a public health agency, focusing on various human conditions or aspects like HIV, sexual and reproductive health rights, water sanitation and hygiene etc. And while we achieved results, we learnt that we could not achieve impact if we did not approach people’s health more comprehensively. Therefore, as Swasti learns and grows we realize that from now on what we do and how we do it needs to change significantly. Swasti means “Wellbeing” in Sanskrit, and this can be achieved when there are people centered health systems. We understand that well-being is a journey and health is a status, and that everyday, everyone has a right to experience well-being, no matter whothey are, what their job is, how old they are, where they live, what gender they are, their position in society, or any of the other labels accorded by society. Poor healthcare leads to outcomes ranging from catastrophic health expenditure to preventable deaths, which is violence and injustice. Furthermore, with the COVID pandemic and now with increased vagaries of climate, there are further vulnerabilities and risks.
Learning from examples of what works in India and the world
Experience in preventing diseases and conditions; and access to effective treatment when required
Deep commitment and respect for the poor and marginalised communities and principles of empowerment, gender and equity
Understanding of the missing pieces in health. e.g. Social change, management, Technology, etc.
Strong belief that we are in it to challenge established norms and break barriers (particularly the circular nature of poverty and health) and innovate
Work on policies, systems and establish linkages etc
Stewardship encompasses the ethical responsibility to act on behalf of others and to honor the responsibilities of service, rather than to pursue one's own self-interest (Block, 2013). When we began, we were a meso level organization, moving seamlessly between micro and macro-level structures, earning a seat at the table with the most marginalized communities and their organizations as well as with policy makers and investors. We were, and remain, champions and allies of vulnerable communities, strengthening community systems, and also policies and investments in global health so that health works for those who are, and are most likely to be, left behind. In the course of our journey we have had the privilege and joy of meeting several individuals, organizations and entities of varying sizes and occupying various spaces that make well-being real for the most marginalized. We are working for something bigger than ourselves and it was only natural that we would find ourselves in positions where we could make brilliant partnerships possible - be it in our avatar as a technical public health agency or as a partner in the well-being journey of more than a billion people across 14 communities.
Furthermore, we define vulnerability in terms of major socioeconomic or cultural indicators of inequality that are attached to a person by birth or by way of lifestyle, the systems which contain them and which hinders their ability to gain equitable access to fundamental areas of human development.
Key indicators of vulnerability include class, religion, caste, comorbidities, gender, disability, occupation and so on. Climate change creates multiple, intersecting burdens on communities that are already vulnerable and is an additional scenario to integrate across our work.
1 Billion “healthy” days for vulnerable people by 2030
Our North Star Metric
Our long-term goal that contributes to our vision is achieving 100 million “healthy” days for vulnerable people.
How do we define a “healthy” day * ?
A day where an individual is able to:
When a person is able to harness healthy days for themselves, they are able to do this for their family. The value of everyday wellbeing as an indicative journey of long-term resilience that goes beyond the current health status of an individual or community.
Please see the detailed health day calculations document for more.
People in vulnerable situations need to become first responders to the health concerns of their community members.
A sensitized, capable and resilient community of HRH is essential to achieve our vision of health equity through last-mile service delivery.
Health, technology and other domains relevant to health
Community organizations of different kinds should represent the needs of the community, including health needs and work to find solutions to major concerns.
Health policy needs to be inclusive, equitable and people-centered, which in turn needs to be driven by strong evidence from the ground up. Government players are key to driving impact at scale
Philanthropies, bilateral and multilaterals, foundations, corporate investors etc
Our Theory of Change represents the application of our values and beliefs: our ingredients for change- through the medium of our key stakeholders- our agents of change.
In order to ‘mobilise’ our Theory of Change, we will use certain key ‘verbs’ that capture our implementation strategy.
