Green Star Social Marketing Pakistan Health And Social Care Essay

Green Star Social Marketing Pakistan was established in 1991 with a grant from US AID as a non-profit organization by Population Services International with the aim to improve the quality of low-income people’s lives through its vast array of high quality health products and services. Green Star operates through the private sector and with the Government of Pakistan (GoP) by empowering healthier choices and improving the access to its affordable product and services portfolio. It is the country’s second-largest family planning provider after the GoP. Green Star family planning products or services protect 1 out of every 4 married couples who use modern methods.

It has achieved great progress in building a huge network of private trustworthy family planning service providers. In 2005 Green Star added Good Life to its family healthcare providers. Green star’s Sabz Sitara has become a renowned brand in providing high quality and affordable family planning in Pakistan. The Good Life portfolio addresses a broader spectrum of family health needs including maternal and child health issues such as safe water, nutrition and malaria, and infectious diseases such as HIV and TB.

Green Star’s all encompassing mission is as follows:

“To improve the quality of life among people throughout Pakistan by increasing access to and use of health products, services and information, particularly in the lower socio-economic population groups.” 

Green star touches millions of low-income Pakistanis every year through mass media, community meetings, and thousands of private-sector medical clinics and retail outlets country-wide. Green Star is also a global pioneer in the “social franchising” of private-sector health services, having trained more than 18,000 private health care providers since 1995. The government of Pakistan promotes strong public-private partnerships and GSMP network of professional medical providers considerably reinforces the private sector. Of all the modern contraception practiced in Pakistan, GSMP contributes approximately 27% enabling it to have the largest share (See Exhibit 1). The government policies also encourage Green Star to increase its social marketing and grow its network. There is no parallel company to Green Star as they provide subsidized or free products and services and with its strong alliance with donors, NGOs and the government, it enjoys a competitive advantage. However, there are pharmaceutical companies which provides the same products but at a higher cost. The marketing strategy is direct, that is, one to one marketing which is the most effective method in the Pakistani context.

Culture:

The culture of organization is highly innovative. The management believes in horizontal communication, it is believed that ideas and innovation comes from the roots of the organization. The management encourages employees to participate in the daily decision making and follows management by objective (MBO) at every step. The management of the organization is result oriented and gives autonomy to the employees to encourage creativity and productivity at every stage. This is the real point from where the innovation comes from as the company’s vision is for mostly under develop nations therefore people from within gives the real solution for problems they face. Appraisal is also based on the contribution each employee makes. They provide flexi hours and sabbatical leaves to improve their overall intellectual capital and increase the gross productivity of their employees. The culture of green star is aligned with the mission of social marketing and it reflects each department by the autonomy they provide to the employees.

Talent Management:

There is a different sub department in the HR department which takes care of the talent management in a way that Green Star representatives who are good at Interpersonal skills are sent to rural and urban areas in order to create awareness about the social health evils prevailing in the society. The main marketing of Green Star is mainly focused on women and strong Interpersonal communication of the Green Star representatives and it is a huge task to select potential employees who can communicate the company’s perspective to the consumer without hurting any of the religious or the social beliefs of the consumer. For rural areas they have developed IPC teams which consist of men and women. They travel to areas like FATA and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which are quite rigid in terms of cultural values and religious beliefs. Women have separate session with green star female representatives to discuss their problems and get guidance for domestic issues.

Product and Services Portfolio:

Green Star has wide number of products and services through the Green Star Network of private healthcare providers, which includes female and male doctors, female paramedics, and pharmacists and also through non-Green Star outlets, which comprise of pharmacies, retail outlets and clinics providing non-surgical services.

Products: (See Exhibit 2 for Evolution of Different Method Users)

Sathi Condoms:

Sathi condom is Green Star’s flagship brand which was launched in 1986 and has the largest share of 70%. Sathi condoms have an average 36 million unit sales per month whereas Touch have lower sales (See Exhibit 3 for Sathi’s Multi-Year Primary Sales). Condoms are the most widely used family planning method in Pakistan and Sathi’s significant share of the condom market means that it alone provides most of the contraceptives. It widely available in 45,000 retail outlets across Pakistan and priced at approximately Rs. 15 per condom and thus is the most affordable condom in the country.

Touch Condoms:

This is upscale brand of condom and was launched in 1996. It has strengthened due to two variants: 1) Touch Ribbed and 2) Touch Dotted condoms and these brands cumulative sales were about 2 million in 2003. Its target market is for people perceiving high risk for disease prevention. In 2003, the Touch range sales increased to over 10 million condoms per year which is more than the accumulated units of all others NGOs and more than any commercial brand in the country except Sathi.

Hormonal Contraceptives:

Hormonal contraceptive usage has been very low in Pakistan with oral and injectable contraceptive at 1.9% and 2.5% respectively. The brands offered are Nova-Oral, Nova-Jet, Microgyon, Lo-Feminal, Megestron, and Femi-ject. Green Star is the only healthcare Green Star is the only health organization in the country to offer complete range of injectable contraceptives and the combined sales is over 1.7 million injections.

Vitalet:

Launched in 2000 under Health-Plus Project, Vitalet is a multi vitamin supplement. It contains iron, zinc, vitamin A and other key micronutrients. The aim is to enhance the quality of life of low-income women by providing nutrition to fight against deficiency in babies. Total sales till 2007 were over 278,000 packs.

Sehat Wali Gari:

The Mobile Service Van was launched in 2000 as a fully equipped mobile health van which provides highly subsidized general and reproductive health care in backward communities. The mobile van is on the field everyday in remote areas providing health services to undeserved women and children. Green star intends to extend its reach to rural populations through these efforts.

Voluntary Surgical Contraception (VSC):

Female Voluntary Surgical Contraception (VSC) was started through the Green star Plus clinics in 2001. It is the safest and economical contraceptive method for both genders and intends to be permanent and effective. Over 9,000 surgeries have been performed till 2007 (See Exhibit 4 for VSC Sales in 2002-06).

Clean Delivery Kit:

A new initiative started in 2003, CDK is a pre-packaged disposable delivery kit containing clean object for example swabs, gloves and other items to aid for cleaner and safer deliveries at homes where 77% are taken place. The Kit helps reduce the chances of tetanus, neo-natal and maternal sepsis which occur during delivery.

Emergency Contraceptive Pill (ECP):

The first socially marketed emergency contraceptive pill, EC prevents unplanned pregnancies in event of unprotected intercourse, contraceptive failure or missed dosage of OC. It is highly effective, safe and reliable with up to 95 percent efficacy if used correctly. Since its launch, 386,000 packs of EC have been sold to providers and chemists (See Exhibit 5 for ECP Multi-Year Primary Sales).

Malaria Prevention Pilot:

As part of the government plan of National Malaria Strategic Plan, Green star received funding from The Global Fund to start a project to social market ITNs (Insecticide Treated Nets) and nets in high-risk malaria districts and villages to target the highest risk people of pregnant women and children below 5 years.

The other products are Baby Active and PUR which is the focus of the case study as the most innovative products.

Services:

Family Planning and Reproductive Health:

A network of Green Star (Subz-Sitara) franchise was launched in 1995 to accomplish the condom social marketing program and is now recognized as one of the largest private sector Reproductive Health social franchise networks in the world. At the end of the fiscal year 2005-06, more than 16,000 private health care providers including over 3,000 lady doctors, and above 13,000 other health care providers including male doctors, paramedics, general practitioners from other medical disciplines such as homeopathy and eastern medicine and pharmacists were registered on GSMP health care providers network. The health impact was that from 1995 till 2006, GSMP achieved over 15 million CYP (Couple Year of protection from unwanted Pregnancy), which contributed in averting approximately 9.3 million unintended pregnancies and approximately 16,500 maternal deaths. (See Exhibits 6 and 7)

Communicable Diseases:

Fight against HIV/AIDS: The aim is to fight against HIV/AIDS in Pakistan because above 5% prevalence is reported amongst high-risk group and is constantly rising. The prime beneficiaries were brothels as part of the project for STD and HIV/AIDS prevention. After thorough research, clinics and labs were set up for the project’s implementation and adopted Behavior Change Communication Strategy and interpersonal communication tools for awareness.

TB Program: Pakistan has the seventh highest TB burden in the world, with an estimated prevalence of 177/100,000. Around 1.5 million people are living with the disease in the country. Despite the extraordinary efforts of the government and partners, case detection still remains at 39%. The goal of this program is to create greater awareness and provide increased access to high quality TB DOTS information, testing and treatment through a private sector clinic franchise – Good Life Stop TB Network. Around 1000 patients successfully completed their treatment. Through its innovative strategy, Green Star has improved access for TB diagnosis and treatment providing healthcare on “the doorsteps of patients.”

Mother & Child Health:

Green Star is a partner of Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) a five-year project, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (US AID). Green Star adopted a strategy to train traditional birth attendants (TBAs) in adopting clean delivery practices after having consumer insight that TBAs play a vital role in assisting births in our culturally sensitive environment. These TBAs serve as guides for skilled attendants and maternal and newborn health needs and promoting women to enroll for essential pre- and postnatal care and follow up on self-care advice and other recommendations.

Family Health:

Green Star built a strong and wide network of private family health care providers under the Good Life brand whose portfolio addresses a broader spectrum of family health needs as discussed earlier (See Exhibit 8 for Good Life’s products) together with Green Star own products to develop family health care of under privileged people (See Exhibit 9 for Green Star products).

Challenges faced by company in Pakistan:

Pakistan has a very conservative society especially when it comes to children, pregnancy and intimate relations of husbands and wives. People are not very comfortable talking on such issues. Thus, Green Star faces communication barriers to impart awareness of family planning where discussing about these matters is such a taboo. Cultural norms of Pakistan restrict specific societal marketing efforts pursued by Green Star but so far Green Star is fighting all the odds and making its way to success. Diverse religious beliefs of people living in Pakistan makes social marketing difficult for the company as well as its representatives Another thing is that, that It’s human nature to resist any kind of change because people do not want to come out of their comfort zone specially when the organization is being funded by US AID which also injects a negative feeling in the society of Pakistan.

Baby Active: ‘The Innovative Product’

BABY ACTIVE is an ideal solution for Anemia and Micronutrient Deficiencies in infants and young children.

The recent WHO estimates suggest that the number of children with iron deficiency and anemia is approximately 750 million. In developing countries, it is estimated that more than 40 to 50 % of children less than 5 years of age are iron deficient.

Launch of baby active:

Islamabad: In Pakistan existence of IDA (iron deficiency anemia) is up to 78% amongst the children fewer than 5 years of age said Inspector General hospitals Ministry of Health Dr Abdul Majid Rajput.

According to the earlier research by the company more than 60 % of infants of age 6 months to 24 months are suffering from IDA which is a concern for developing world. IDA also weakens the immune system of babies. Dr Rajput said that most of the products are not good enough as they don’t contain the iodine which affects the health of kids.

Iron is the most important intake during infancy, most important than any other stage in life. He said that traditionally infants young as 6 to 24 months old are weaned on a low nutrition starch based porridge that doesn’t have iron rich extracts. For decades giving infants the iron drops to prevent deficiency. But the outcome had been low because of bad taste, teeth staining and inconvenience in administration. Brand manager that time Mr. Amir Nehal said Baby Active was composed of iron granules to mask the metallic taste of the iron plus other micronutrients (vitamin A, C, D, zinc, folic) that enhance iron deficiency. The process of baby active was very easy just to mix with the food baby having, no effect on taste and smell of the food. The launch price was affordable too of Rs. 2 per sachet.

Iron deficiency or IDA demonstrates:

Altered behavior and cognition, such as increased fearfulness and lower IQ

Altered motor development, such as decreased exploration of environment and fatigue.

Poor cognition

Weakens the immune system

Along with the nutritional benefits Baby Active also helps to:

Improve the body’s immune system

Improve a child’s energy

Improve a child appetite

Improve a child’s ability to learn and develop

Baby active sachets contain dissolvable sprinkles, a formulation recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Baby active contains:

Vitamin A ( acetate, USP) 300ug

Vitamin C ( ascorbic acid, USP-FCC) 30 mg

Zinc ( Zinc Gluconate, USP) 5mg

Iron ( Ferrous Fumarate) 12.5mg

Folic Acid (USP-FCC) 160 ug

Iodine ( Potassium Iodine) 90ug

Dosage:

A child between 6 to 24 months needs just one sachet daily for 60 days. The contents can be mixed easily with any food, including rice and wheat.

Marketing Innovations:

No societal marketing company has ever advertised family planning and it well being so aggressively as Green Star advertised using mass media. SUNO ZARA was one of the famous campaigns by Green Star which was a huge success .They marketed the intrauterine contraceptive device not through advertising to the masses but to doctors since they are the major influencers .The doctors had heard about the IUD but did not understand how it worked. Green Star started the initiative by educating doctors and making best use of their products. Rather than just selling medicines, Green star hired a galaxy of male and female workers for their outreach program.

Green Star is the only sustainable societal marketing organization constantly working and helping the mothers and children of some challenging terrains of Pakistan like Khyber Pakhtunkhaw and FATA regardless of terrorism and critical working conditions.

Inter Personal Communication (IPC) teams which have designated areas to educate those people in the allocated areas in mosques, hospitals, mohallas through aunties and union heads try to change the behavior and mindsets of people. Green star is stressing on the fact to encourage women to have a gap of several years after a baby’s birth and do not talk about birth control as it is against the cultural norms and traditions. This communication strategy is an innovation in itself.

The company already knew that even today 77% of the deliveries are being done by the traditional birth system at home so they oriented 400 traditional birth attendants in the rural areas so that clean delivery practices can be encouraged. Green star provided CLEAN DELIVERY KITS door to door in rural areas to the homes of the expecting mothers in which they have all the necessary clean objects. Free training to male and female workers were provided in both urban and rural areas (Concentration more on rural areas)

Door to door women health education along with a goody bag from Green star is provided by the Green Star representatives and helps them educate the rural population about the benefits of birth control. Sehat Wali Gari is also one of the innovations from Green star which provides health services to underserved women and children, it is a fully equipped mobile health van which not only provides tips on reproductive health but also subsidized medicines

Health initiatives and baby sprinkle food supplement awareness for malnutrition of kids were provided not only in urban and rural areas but also at the Afghan Refugee camps in Islamabad. Since march 2012 Green star clinics has provided free medical services to over 2500 patients of which 1000 patients were children.

Free and low cost maternal and child health services all over Pakistan along with child mother supplements and medicines. After the earthquake in Pakistan (2008) Green star Introduced PURE (Purifier of water) which helped the people living not only in urban and rural areas but also in the earthquake affected camps so that they can drink safe healthy water without even boiling it

Benefits that Innovations have brought to the Company:

Talking about the innovation in the company it has benefited company in number of ways. We can find product innovation and marketing innovation both at the same time. The very first benefit that the company gained from marketing process innovation was the penetration and the awareness which it created specially in the rural areas because no company had done such kind of social marketing before in Pakistan. It created a vibe among the women of Pakistan because and Green star started to gain fame. Their product innovations like contraceptive pills, water cleansers, baby active sprinkle food supplements, pregnancy delaying pills etc. made them the pioneer in the social marketing territory in Pakistan and even today there is no company parallel to Green star.

Green star’s vision is to provide high quality and affordable healthy living services on a national scale and for meeting this purpose Green star’s franchises were launched in 1995 which complemented the social marketing program and today by the grace of God it is one of the largest sector (private) social franchises networks in the whole world.

From 1995 to 2006 Green star achieved more than 15 million CYP (Couple Year of Protection from unwanted Pregnancy) which means 9.3 million unintended pregnancies and maternal death were avoided. (See Exhibit 6)

Green Star has also been awarded with a number of achievers award by the Government of Pakistan and other countries. Initially was supported by US AID but after the incident of 9/11 American Government lifted the sanctions from Pakistan and since then Green Star is receiving its funds from other organizations and NGOs as well and continuing its services to the society. Green Star services are also a great source of preventing birth and thus stabilizing the population of Pakistan. (See Exhibit 7)

Green Star is delivering more than thirty percent of all the family planning in Pakistan. No other Pakistani NGO has the reach to low income population as much as Green Star has. (See Exhibit 1)

Green Star Marketing Pakistan has a long way to go ahead and will gain more recognition as education and awareness level will increase amongst the masses. It is constantly surrounded by problems and challenges but its great marketing strategies and innovative products have enabled it to achieve tremendous success and have created a huge impact on the health, hygiene and quality of life of an average Pakistani.

APPENDIX

Exhibit 1: Contraceptive Market Share

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Exhibit 2: Evolution of Different Method Users

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Exhibit 3: Sathi Multi-Year Primary Sales

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Exhibit 4: VSC Sales for 2002-06

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Exhibit 5: ECP Multi-Year Primary Sales

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Exhibit 6

C:Documents and SettingsAdministratorDesktopexhibit 1

Exhibit 7

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Exhibit 8

Summary of GS Products

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Good Life

Safe Water

PUR

Nutrition

Baby Active, Vitalet, Iron Fol

Infectious Disease

Clean-star Delivery Kit,

Super net

Exhibit 9

Summary of GS Products

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Subz-Sitara

Condoms

Sathi, Touch

Pills

Nova, Novadol, ECP

Injections

Femiect, Nova-ject, Megestron

IUDS

Multi-load

STD Treatment

Clear 7