RRC INNOVATIVE YOUTH HEALTH COUNSELLING CELL-By DAPCU Dakshina Kannada-

         In Dakshina Kannada district Red Ribbon Clubs (RRC) Established under NSS units of 64 colleges. Out of which 32 are Pre university colleges and 32 are Degree colleges.  In our district there is active involvement of  RRC members in HIV awareness programmes at different levels. There are many innovative activities by these clubs not only  within the college campus but  also in the field like pamphlet distribution for  the vulnerable groups like auto  and Taxi drivers, and construction workers etc.

       One such innovative programme is Youth Health Counselling Cell (YHCC) In college campus.  During awareness talks for student community , most of the students  never ask some very personal questions in front of others because of shyness. But when  they made to write such questions, many of them ask many serious doubts which need to be answered. So YHCC  gives platform to such doubts by one to one counselling methods.

      It was so planned that a male counsellor will attend only boys and a female counsellor attend girls for this one to one counselling. A day selected by the college officials and DAPCO will be intimated about this,   inturn DAPCO deputes counsellor  to this college .  Also a  Psychiatrist  and a Psycho social worker from the department of Psychiatry  from a medical college  made to join their hands for this purpose. Information   about   this counselling  will be given to  students by RRC members prior  to the programme.  Initially it was planned to have such counselling day twice or thrice in a year in coordination with the RRC of that college.

Besant Women’s college of Mangalore was the first college to hold such programme in their institution . Mr. U. T. Khader  hon. Health & Family welfare minister of Karnataka launched this programme in this college on 3rd February 2014. He appreciated the activity and wanted to  similar programmes in all the colleges during the next academic years. He told  many youth are careless about  their health due to lack of knowledge hence indulge in many high risk activities and substance abuse.  He told YHCC is one such platform to address these issues and thus prevent not only HIV/AIDS but many other illness. 

On this occasion exhibition on hiv/aids also organized. 

In our district  such one to counselling sessions conducted already at 4 colleges. The response from the students was very good.   Medical related issues also linked up with the concerned doctors.