Strengthening the THRIVE Project through Stakeholder Engagement

On the 18th August , the IRD THRIVE Project team held a crucial stakeholder consultation with the Regional Directorate of Health Services (RDHS), Galle, to further develop the research programme on postnatal depression in the Galle District.

The IRD team, including Prof. Athula Sumathipala, Project Director; Dr. Oshini Sri Jayasinghe, Project Lead; Hirudimalee de Silva, Project Coordinator; and four Research Assistants, met with:

* Dr. K. D. N. P. Ranaweera – Regional Director of Health Services (RDHS)

* Dr. K. T. Samararatne – Deputy Regional Director of Health Services (DRHS)

* Dr. P. G. C. Prasadini – Medical Officer, Maternal & Child Health (MO-MCH)

* Dr. N. I. Sandamali – Medical Officer, Quality Management Unit (MO-QMU)

* O. K. T. P. Karunarathna – Regional Supervising Public Health Nursing Officer (RSPHNO)

* Dr. Asanka Sinharage – Medical Officer, Mental Health (MOMH)

This stakeholder engagement is a key component of implementation research, providing an opportunity to obtain the perspectives, experiences, advice and recommendations of policy planners, clinicians and frontline practitioners. These insights will help further refine the research programme, intervention design and implementation approach to ensure that it is responsive to the realities of the health system.

The consultation builds on a series of engagements with key stakeholders, including the Secretary of Health, Family Health Bureau, Governor and Secretary of Health of the Southern Province, community physicians, psychiatrists, psychologists, Medical Officers of Mental Health, as well as service users with lived experience.

Through continued collaboration with those who shape, deliver and experience health services, the THRIVE Project aims to develop an approach that is evidence-informed, contextually relevant and feasible for implementation within routine maternal health services.