Depending on the particular health priorities, urban poor characteristics, and institutional realities, there are numerous urban health interventions that might be appropriate:
Strengthen the capacity of existing NGOs to bring high quality health interventions to slum neighborhoods
Provide appropriate technologies resource for healthy housing design, on site water purification and sanitation, improved drainage, safer cooking facilities and appropriate fuel options
Provide pooling mechanisms to help communities jointly invest in (1) communal health insurance or (2) low cost infrastructure improvements that will benefit everyone
Strengthen local institutions (private and public) and find ways to link them to resources and facilities that can help them gain the attention and collaboration of policy makers in addressing community concerns
Targeted subsidies, pro-poor insurance plans and/or other economic incentive structures that help cover healthcare payments of the urban poor
Target slum dwellers with education campaigns designed to spread important information about the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease, via billboards, radio shows, religious organizations, Community Based Organizations, and peer-to-peer networks
Outreach programs targeting that sensitize health care providers to the needs and cultural traditions of the people they serve in poor urban areas
The expertise in use of various urban health models and the various settings in which they are effective is growing slowly. One way to tap this expertise is through emerging urban health networks including the International Society for Urban Health (ISUH).
