Mainstreaming Nutrition Initiative

In the first stage of this project, we are reviewing past efforts to integrate nutrition interventions into MNCH policies and programs. Some systematic efforts to do this have included IMCI, C-IMCI, and the Essential Nutrition Actions approach. We are interested in learning about experiences with these efforts, and also about any other efforts to integrate nutrition into MNCH policies and programs.

To ensure that we review even those efforts that are not published in the academic literature or that are not easily available on the Web, we request you or your organization to send us relevant documents that address any of the following aspects of integrating nutrition interventions into health systems:

(1) Descriptions of integrated approaches that address any of the following issues:

• What nutrition interventions were integrated? Into what types of health sector programs/systems?
• How nutrition was brought on the political agenda?
   
• What types of institutional arrangements were needed for integrating nutrition with health sector policies and programs?
• What aspects of the health system needed to be strengthened for the integration to work as intended?
• What were the most salient barriers to integration?
• What capacity strengths (or other factors) facilitated the integration process?

(2) Evaluations of integrated interventions and that address any of the following outcomes:

• Health/Nutrition Impact
• Cost effectiveness
• Cost savings
• Institutional demands
• Feasibility of implementation
• Coverage

Please send your documents and responses to the following email address: MainstreamingNutrition@cornell.edu.

If you do not have electronic versions of your documents, please send hard copies to:

Purnima Menon, Ph.D.
Division of Nutritional Sciences
Savage Hall
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853, USA

Or, via fax to: +1 (607) 255 1033 (Attn: Purnima Menon)

Please feel free to circulate this request for documents.