Participatory rapid assessment of local health traditions

In a great majority of the rural communities in India, illness is treated with home remedies and specialised folk healers. The Foundation for the Revitalisation of Local Health Traditions (FRLHT) has initiated a project to document and assess these health practices in four states in Southern India using participatory assessments. The selected practices are promoted to improve primary health care. Presently, the FRLHT-Compas programme is preparing an action plan to promote selected medicinal plants in one million kitchen home gardens. This document details the project: the documentation process and the use of Rapid Assessment, and goes on to identify learning points and the way forward.