Garima Shukla (center) surrounded by her clients and their family members.
Since 2012, Garima Shukla has been a trusted counselor at the District Women’s Hospital in Hardoi, a city supported by The Challenge Initiative (TCI). As a Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child, and Adolescent Health (RMNCHA) counselor, the 51-year-old provides family planning alongside maternal and child health services. Over the years, her dedication has earned her deep affection and respect from clients and their families.
Garima begins family planning counseling during the antenatal period, using Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) materials to ensure every client has the information needed to make informed choices. She adapts her approach based on her clients’ educational backgrounds, always with empathy:
Educated clients have more awareness and access to information through IEC and the internet. On the other hand, illiterate women, often residing in slums, require more time and personalized attention.”
For Garima, counseling is about connection. She greets families warmly to create a welcoming atmosphere. She also shares her phone number so clients and their husbands can reach her with concerns, reinforcing that support extends beyond the clinic.
When women and their family members, including mothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, visit, I greet them warmly and compliment their attire, such as saris and accessories. This creates a comfortable atmosphere.”
To promote method continuity, Garima has developed a unique reminder system:
I maintain a list of festivals in my register, and in my message for the next dosage, I inform the client that they have to come after or before any particular festival that will fall near the follow-up day. This helps the client remember the date.”
Garima’s success also lies in empowering her clients. Women who have used injectable contraceptives consistently since 2018 often share their experiences with new clients. These long-time users become informal ambassadors, referring friends and neighbors and helping to build trust in family planning services.
Through dedication, empathy, and creativity, Garima Shukla is not only counseling women – she is cultivating a supportive community for family planning in Hardoi.
