Public Health has a Bright Future in India
Public Health will improve in India because Indian people are open to new ideas. There is a strong sense of family and community everywhere in India, and people here spend much less time alone than people do in many other countries. Because of this, when somebody hears about a problem, then that person is very likely to talk about it with his family, friends, neighborhood, and whole community.
The concept of HIV is new to some people. The concept of diseases transmitting through body fluid is new to some people. The concept of a disease being related to a person's sex practices or style of drug use is new to some people. In some areas, even disease theory - meaning that illness has a natural, determinable cause - is a new idea. But Indian people everywhere are good listeners and relayers of information, and Sanjeevani Booti is in a position to spread good information quickly and efficiently in populations where no one else has taken interest.
India is fortunate that at the brink of worldwide infection, our entire country is in a stage of rapid social and educational development and people are already craving new ideas. When we teach people about STDs and other blood-borne infections, people do not just listen because they have fear of illness - they listen because they truly want to learn more about the world around them. Issues relating to HIV involve discussion and debate about not only health, but government duty, the meaning of citizenship, the roots of family, international politics, corporate pharmaceutical manufacture, the pressures of being young, and the purpose of education itself.
India is in a revolution now, and its people want to be better people. The mission of Sanjeevani Booti is as communal as it is personal - there is great demand for our organization as a means to national and self improvement.
