Impact of the integrated Radio Communication Project in Nepal, 1994-1997

The Radio Communication Project (RCP) in Nepal is an ongoing, theory-based, multimedia reproductive health campaign which began in 1995. It consists o f two entertainment-education radio serials (a soap opera for the general p ublic and a dramatized distance education serial for health workers), addit ional radio spot advertisements and promotions, and complementary print mat erials. This paper examines impact data from a variety of sources, includin g a pre- and postpanel survey of currently married women (N = 1905), three waves of clinic-based observations of client-provider interactions (N = 240 per wave) and client exit interviews (N = 240 per wave), and 2 years of cl inic service statistics, in or der to draw inferences about the separate an d combined effects of the RCP components. The study found increased health worker interpersonal interaction skills, improved quality of client-provide r interactions, increased client self-efficacy in dealing with health worke rs, improved client attitudes toward health ser vices and toward the practi ce of family planning, increased adoption of family planning, and increased family planning ser vice utilization, all attributable to the RCP. The pan el data allowed statistical control of the influence of predisposing factor s before the campaign on postcampaign ideation and behavior. The effect of the RCP on contraceptive behavior was largely indirect through its influenc e on ideation. Implications for the design of integrated, multimedia, enter tainment-education campaigns and integrated evaluation designs are discusse d.