Digital Pulse - Ch 3 - Sec 2 - Centre 4 TV Medical Drama

Development Issues: Health, HIV/AIDS, Immunization & Vaccines, Youth

Programme Summary

The purpose of this television medical drama, which was designed by the Johns Hopkins University Center for Communication Programs (JHU/CCP) and partners as part of the Delivery of Improved Services for Health (DISH) II Project, is to weave health information into stories that will engage viewers. The show's 13 episodes, meant to appeal to men and women ages 18 to 35, began airing on TV Africa in Uganda in October 2002. Centre 4 has a potential viewership of 110 million in Uganda and many others in 20 additional African nations.

DISH II was initiated to improve the quality, availability, and utilisation of reproductive, maternal, and child health services, and to enhance public health attitudes, knowledge, and practices in Uganda. The programme was implemented in 12 of the country's 56 districts Kampala, Jinja, Kamuli, Masindi, Nakasongola, Luwero, Masaka, Rakai, Sembambule, Mbarara, Ntungamo and Kasese.

The overall goals of the DISH Project aimed to:

• Make good quality maternal, child and reproductive health services more widely available;
• Improve district capacity to support good quality health services;
• Encourage healthy practices among individuals, families and communities;
• Document, evaluate, and share lessons learned with others.

The Centre 4 project is one of the centrepieces of DISH II's Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) component that has the mandate to develop innovative communication methods and resources that address the social and lifestyle issues faced by families, individuals, communities and service providers. [Click here for more information.] The BCC strategy is to conduct multi-channel campaigns that direct individuals towards health services and to change behavioural practices. Their programmes often combine new media with standard print materials and are organized along the lines of interlinked themes.

Summary of ICT Initiatives

The drama communicates messages about how to lead a healthier life by following the life-and-death challenges experienced by Ugandan characters. Based in a semi-rural health facility – the Konaweeka Health Centre – the characters address and cope with a variety of health and personal care issues in the community. The episodes address important health issues such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, safe childbirth, childhood immunization, contraceptive options and adolescent health. Many of the episodes are reflections of the themes in other DISH II information campaigns. For example, one of the episodes specifically addressed Norplant contraceptives, an element of DISH II's Long Term and Permanent Family Planning Methods Campaign.

The program also addresses issues of personal responsibility among all citizens. The “Bible” or overarching document that guides the storyline contains character descriptions that are archetypes of different attitudes towards responsibility, good will towards others, and differences in view towards the changing structure of society (e.g. traditional vs. modern practices). Furthermore, Centre 4 contributes to the challenge to improve proper professional practice amongst the medical community, including issues of corruption. This was matched to the Yellow Star program that has been communicating Quality of Care – a multi-channel campaign targeting service providers with the purpose of improving the quality of services. As a behavioural message, Centre 4 covers a wide range of subjects presented in a popular format. [Click here for a synopsis of all 13 episodes online.]

Centre 4 was produced in Uganda with a Ugandan cast and crew working in partnership with a small production team from England and Mediae Trust, a Kenyan development communication organisation. From programme concept to scriptwriting and direction, the project was an apprenticeship for Ugandan talent. The intention was to establish TV drama production expertise in Uganda so that future productions can be carried out independently.

Initial design began in May 2001 with a TV Series Design Workshop for representatives of the Uganda Ministry of Health (MOH) and other health organisations. Message strategies for each episode were based on audience research. The workshop resulted in the message content and background for each of the episodes, and the overall creative concept of basing the series around the staff working in a semi-rural Ugandan health centre.

In September and October 2001, flyers publicizing Centre 4 were distributed to major television, video, and stage production houses in Uganda, calling for video production talent to apply for training positions as scriptwriters, directors, sound recordists, camera-persons, editors, and production managers. The three Ugandan scriptwriters participated throughout, and were teamed up with health content specialists from the MOH and the DISH II project. Filming began in February 2002 and continued through May 2002, in Jinja.

Partners: DISH II is a partnership between the MOH and a group led by JHU/CCP that included the University of North Carolina Program in International Training and Health (INTRAH), Management Sciences for Health (MSH) and the Johns Hopkins Program for International Education in Reproductive Health (JHPIEGO). The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Ford Foundation provided financial support. The Mediae Trust, a Kenyan communication organisation, also participated in the production.

Source:JHUCCP site and the Centre 4 page on the DISH II site.

For More Information Contact:

Jane Koehler

Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs

111 Market Place, Suite 310

Baltimore, Maryland 21202, USA

Tel.: (410) 659-6300

Fax: (410) 659-6266

jkoehler@jhuccp.org