Urban dai organizers: performance and attitudes
Pakistan journal of family planning 2(1): 7-12
1968
PMID: 12336253 Document Number: 521328
2 samples of 50 dais (traditional midwives) were selected in order to assess the dais' knowledge of family planning, their commitment to the program, and their program-related activities. Data were collected for the first 16 months of an urban family planning program in West Pakistan. In 1 sample the dais' referrals were tallied and plotted by month, and 48 dais were questioned about their relationship to each of their clients and how they recruited them. A precoded questionnaire was administered to 44 dais in the 2nd sample. Analysis of referrals suggested that the dais recruit persons most familiar to them and in places most familiar to them and subsequently their efficiency declines. The low referral rate of many dais suggests a need for the family planning officers to dismiss ineffective dais. Inferences from responses to the commitment items suggest that at least 1/4 of the dais may be highly committed to the program and that probably as much as 1/2 have behavior and beliefs consistent with commitment to the program. About 1/5 of the dais do not approve of the IUD.