To date, there has been little if any research conducted on the relationship between health and housing in the Northern Areas of Pakistan. For several decades, both Aga Khan Health Service, Pakistan and Aga Khan Planning and Building Service, Pakistan have been working in these sectors, actively seeking a better quality of life for the people in this region. The two organisations recently recognized this gap in the knowledge base and pursued this study to gain a better understanding of health and housing. This would also serve to enhance their respective programme activities.
A preliminary joint study was thereby proposed to collect data on the implications of selected housing improvements introduced by the Building and Construction Improvement Programme (BACIP), specifically in relation to health. The study was to determine whether there is a correlation between the two variables. Specifically, the study sought to find out if better lighting, ventilation, and warmth inside the house can contribute towards fewer illnesses and improved health in general.
The study was designed to collect data in two sets of houses ? those with housing interventions introduced by BACIP and houses without. 50 study houses and 100 control houses were selected for the study. The study houses were selected on the basis that 1) they have installed at least one improvement that addresses the issues of ventilation and/or warmth, namely Roof Hatch Window, Wall Insulation, and Double Glass Window; and 2) households with improvements installed at least one year prior to the study. The control houses were carefully chosen on the basis of their similarity to BACIP houses in terms of the following socio-economic characteristics: age structure, education, income, and housing.
A Joint Study With Aga Khan Health Service, Pakistan (AKHS,P) and Aga Khan Planning and Building Service, Pakistan (AKPBS,P)
Copyright © Aga Khan Planning and Building Service, Pakistan & Aga Khan Health Service, Pakistan, 2001
