TINY FEET

The Tiny Feet Initiative is a global grant project launched to curtail the escalating numbers of maternal and infant fatalities, particularly in remote and tribal Primary Healthcare Centers (PHCs) within the Coimbatore District of South India. Recognizing the increasing Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) and Infant Mortality Rate (IMR), the initiative has identified 53 rural Primary Healthcare Centers with the help of the health ministry in the Coimbatore district.

Grant Members

Importance of Primary Healthcare Centers in India Primary Health Centers (PHCs) are state-owned rural and urban healthcare facilities in India and cover a population of 30,000 in rural and urban areas. It forms the backbone of primary healthcare delivery, focusing on prevention, early intervention, and essential healthcare services. PHCs are critical in providing healthcare services to underserved populations, including low-income individuals and communities.

They are the first point of contact between the patient and the Medical Officer and play a key role in identifying and controlling prevailing health problems, maternal and child health care, family planning, immunization, treatment of common diseases, and provision of essential drugs. PHCs provide antenatal care, deliveries, postnatal care, immunizations, growth monitoring, and nutritional support to pregnant women, mothers, and children. The high-risk patients are referred to the secondary and tertiary level healthcare centers in urban areas.