The Multipurpose Health Worker (MPHW) course is a skill-based training program designed to prepare individuals for delivering essential health services at the grassroots level. The course equips students with knowledge in community health, sanitation, disease prevention, maternal and child care, and basic first aid.

This program plays a vital role in India’s public healthcare system, helping to implement national health programs and bridge the gap between communities and healthcare institutions. MPHWs work directly with people in rural and semi-urban areas to provide preventive, promotive, and limited curative care under the guidance of public health departments.

📘 MPHW Curriculum (General Outline)

🧠 1. Basic Anatomy & Physiology

• Structure and functions of human body systems

• Introduction to cells, tissues, and organs

• Skeletal, muscular, respiratory, circulatory, digestive, urinary, reproductive, and nervous systems

🦠 2. Communicable & Non-Communicable Diseases

• Identification and prevention of communicable diseases: TB, malaria, typhoid, measles, etc.

• Immunization schedules and vaccine handling

• Common non-communicable diseases (NCDs): diabetes, hypertension, cancer, etc.

• Disease surveillance and reporting

👶 3. Maternal and Child Health (MCH)

• Antenatal, intranatal, and postnatal care

• Infant and child nutrition

• Immunization and growth monitoring

• Identification of high-risk pregnancies

• Family planning methods and counseling

🍲 4. Nutrition & Health Education

• Balanced diet and nutritional deficiencies

• Malnutrition management

• Health education techniques and IEC materials

• Counseling on personal hygiene and sanitation

🧼 5. Environmental Sanitation & Public Health

• Safe drinking water and water purification

• Sanitary latrines and waste disposal

• Vector control (mosquito, housefly, etc.)

• First aid in water-borne and vector-borne diseases

💉 6. First Aid & Emergency Care

• Basic life support (BLS)

• Bandaging, wound care, burns, fractures

• Handling accidents, snake bites, poisoning, etc.

• Transporting patients and emergency protocols

🧾 7. Health Programs & Community Work

• National Health Programs: RNTCP, NACP, NRHM/NHM, etc.

• Record-keeping, reporting, and referral services

• Home visits, outreach programs, and follow-up care

• Community survey and data collection

🗣️ 8. Communication & Soft Skills

• Health communication and behavior change

• Public interaction and interpersonal skills

• Basic counseling techniques

• Working in teams and with supervisors

🧪 Practical Training (Internship)

• Postings at PHC/Sub-centers

• Field visits to rural communities

• Hands-on training in vaccination, ANC checkups, sanitation inspection, and first aid

• Home-based newborn and postnatal care

📅 Duration

• 1 Year Course: 6 months theory + 6 months practical

• 2 Year Course: 12-18 months theory + 6-12 months internship

After successful completion of the MPHW course, students can work as:

• Health Worker at Sub-Centers and PHCs

• Community Health Assistant

• Rural Health Activist (RHA)

• Worker in Government Health Schemes like NHM

• Healthcare Assistant in NGOs and Clinics