Program Office

PSI/Cambodia
No. 29, 334 Street
Boeung Keng Kang 1
Khan Chamcar Mon
Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Phone: 855-23-210 814/987 404
Fax: + 855-23-218-735
generalinfo@psi.org.kh

  1. Home
  2. Where We Work
  3. Country Programs

Cambodia

PSI/Cambodia was established in 1993 when it launched the social marketing campaign for Number One condoms, which supported the Government of Cambodia’s (GoC) 100% Condom Use Program. As a key partner of the GoC, PSI Cambodia’s current portfolio focuses on family planning, reproductive health, malaria prevention and treatment, child survival and HIV/AIDS.

In 2002, PSI/Cambodia created the United Health Network (UHN) - a partnership that aims to improve health in Cambodia by supporting local NGOs in creating widespread access to products and behavior change through innovative behavior change interventions. PSI/Cambodia also simultaneously developed the SUN Quality Health Network: a social franchise of private health clinics providing high-quality, affordable family planning and other essential health services.

The following year PSI launched a number of malaria interventions, including Malarine pre-packaged drugs for the treatment of malaria in children and adults as well as Malacheck Rapid Diagnostic Tests. In 2008, the malaria program shifted strategies from importing LLINs to working directly with the private sector to supply free long-lasting insecticide treated kits (LLITKs).

In 2009, PSI/Cambodia relaunched its diarrhea treatment kit, OraselKIT and Toeuk Sovatepheap, a safe water treatment tablet thus growing its child survival work.

Recently, PSI also launched interventions to decrease the number of unsafe abortions, through Cambodia’s first safe medical abortion drug, known as Medabon.

PSI/Cambodia is on track to be a locally registered NGO by 2012, led by a Cambodian Executive Director. This is a strategy which aims to ensure sustainable health impact into the future.

PSI/Cambodia aims to sustainably improve health outcomes by harnessing the private sector to better serve the poor and vulnerable. As a key partner of the GoC, PSI’s support strengthens Cambodia’s health systems by harnessing the private sector to improve the health of the poor and vulnerable. We do so through a portfolio of interventions that include medical detailing, training programs, and targeted outlet support to improve the behaviors of private sector providers – from pharmacies to clinics, entertainment establishments to small shops. We make attractive, quality, and affordable products and services accessible and available. And using innovative evidence as a foundation of all our programs, we encourage healthier behaviors by ensuring poor and vulnerable populations are equipped with the opportunity, ability, and motivation they require to make healthier choices.

Health Areas

Child Survival, Diarrheal Disease, HIV, Malaria, Reproductive Health

PSI in Cambodia

Total Market Approach

The total market approach (TMA) to social marketing emphasizes healthy, sustainable markets to ensure that scarce donor subsidies are targeting those with the least amount of income. The outcome of a total market approach is a sustainable and healthy market through improved targeting of scarce donor subsidized commodities through the public and social marketing sectors to those who cannot afford to pay commercial prices. At the same time, the approach aims to create opportunities for the commercial sector to enter the market with affordable products for wealthier populations that can afford to access for-profit health products.

TMA is a key component of sustainable strategies to ensure long term health impact. The longer their tenure in host countries, international organizations like PSI must evolve their programs to continue to add value in meaningful and innovative ways. For example, in the summer of 2009 DFID announced the full withdrawal of their support for all programs in Cambodia by 2012. The shift to TMA is ensuring that PSI/Cambodia is well prepared – through increased cost recovery and a proportionately sized social marketing sector – for a future of decreased donor support for commodities. This strategy has uniquely positioned PSI to be able to deliver sustainable and measurable, long term health impact.

United Health Network (UHN)

PSI/Cambodia has helped create and sustain a network of local partners to work in HIV/AIDS, reproductive health and, most recently, child survival. PSI/Cambodia ensures that local partner NGOs have the resources, skills, techniques, and products to conduct social marketing and targeted behavior change interventions with at-risk populations such as men who have sex with men (MSM), direct and indirect sex workers, injecting drug users (IDU), and people living with HIV/AIDS. This is done through extensive trainings and capacity building as well as monitoring and evaluation. The UHN program currently provides HIV/AIDS sub-grants to 18 NGOs to conduct social marketing activities aiming to increase access of condoms and lubricant at high risk venues, and conduct targeted behavior change Interventions with high risk populations. UHN sub-grants have been awarded to nine NGOs for Reproductive Health and two for child survival activities.

Health Impact

PSI/Cambodia estimates that in 2010, its products and services helped avert:

  • 54,416 HIV & TB DALYs1
  • 33,719 Reproductive Health DALYs
  • 38,455 Malaria Control DALYs
  • 868 Child Survival DALYs
    1. 1. Source: The DALY (Disability-Adjusted Life Year) is a widely-used, credible metric that was first developed by the World Bank and is now routinely relied upon in the public health community.
Health Interventions
Improving Health in Cambodia

Reproductive Health

PSI’s involvement in reproductive health (RH) began with the launch of the OK oral contraceptive in 1997. This was followed by the successful introduction of the OK brand of injectable contraceptives in 2002 as well as the IUD and OK implant long-term contraceptives. PSI/Cambodia has built upon the initial success of these products with branded and generic marketing campaigns to initiate and maintain demand, including a successful hotline to access information on birth spacing, and recruitment and training of community mobilizers.

On the provider side, PSI/Cambodia invests in capacity building of providers through medical detailing, practical training days, and support to the Sun Quality Health Network: a social franchise of private sector health clinics providing high-quality, affordable family planning and health service delivery. Most recently, PSI/Cambodia launched Medabon safe abortion drug, and supports providers through medical detailing.

PSI/Cambodia aims to improve reproductive health, reduce unintended fertility and reduce maternal mortality. Its interventions focus on social marketing of short term and long-term methods of family planning as well as increasing access to safe abortion, particularly medical abortion services.

PSI/Cambodia's main RH program activities include:

  • Sun Quality Franchise
  • Mobile Video Units (MVUs)
  • Sales & Distribution
  • Medical Detailing Program
  • United Health Network
  • Provider training
  • RH Hotline
  • Medical abortion

HIV Prevention

Since starting operations in 1993, PSI/Cambodia has been a key partner of the GoC in implementing the 100% Condom Use Program – including a generic “Use a Condom” campaign, the Number One condom brand targeting higher income men, and the ‘value for money’ OK Condom brand targeting low-income populations in high-risk relationships, as well as the OK Plus lubricant co-package targeting MSM. These strategies are helping to ensure healthy markets are meeting the needs of all populations in Cambodia.

Strengthened behavior change interventions, including a robust urban IPC intervention, reach those most at risk of HIV, focusing on entertainment workers, MSM, and male clients, while supporting prevention for positive efforts. PSI/Cambodia also builds the capacity of local NGOs to implement effective IPC and social marketing activities through the UHN network and subgrants.

PSI/Cambodia's programs aim to reduce the number of new HIV infections in Cambodia particularly among men who have sex with men, sex workers, their clients, people living with HIV/AIDS and injecting drug users.

Its main HIV program activities include:

  • Interpersonal Communication (IPC)
  • Condom Social Marketing
  • United Health Network (UHN)
  • Behavior Change Communications (BCC)
  • Marketing
  • Distribution
  • Research
  • Mass media
  • Rural outreach/mobile video units (MVU)
  • Subgranting
  • Training and medical detailing

PSI/Cambodia is starting RH/HIV integration and is working with the MOH on a family planning campaign and a behavior change communications campaign for voluntary counseling and testing.

Malaria

PSI’s malaria program operates in all 20 malaria endemic provinces providing a comprehensive package of interventions ranging from intensive training sessions, medical detailing programs, and a social marketing program which provides prevention, diagnostic and treatment commodities. PSI/Cambodia’s unique approach to malaria prevention works with the private sector to “bundle” free LLITKs to each bed net before it is released to the market. Alongside these activities the program raises community awareness through mass media and mobile video units to change unhealthy behaviors and spot light certain issues or new products.


PSI/Cambodia aims to support the GoC’s National Malaria Program by leveraging the private sector to increase access to quality malaria diagnosis, treatment and prevention services. To increase the number of private outlets carrying PSI’s malaria products in 20 endemic provinces; to improve the quality of services offered by private health providers to correctly diagnose and treat malaria; and to increase understanding of malaria prevention and where to seek high quality affordable care through the private sector.

Its main malaria program activities include:

  • Malaria Prevention, Diagnosis, and Treatment
  • Mobile Video Units (MVUs)
  • Sales and Medical Detailing Program
  • Provider training- Early Diagnosis and Treatment (EDAT)

Child Survival

In 2006, PSI/Cambodia launched the world’s first diarrhea treatment kit - combining ORS and zinc, branded OraselKIT. This pilot program has recently been revitalized and expanded, including medical detailing on proper diarrhea treatment, mass media campaigns, and social marketing activities. The child survival program has most recently expanded into prevention through safe water and hygiene programs, focusing on a point of use household water treatment tablets. Products are supported with intensive, community based communications focusing on holistic hygiene behavior change messages.

PSI/Cambodia aims to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with diarrheal disease, particularly in children under five years of age from low-income, rural settings.

Its main child survival program activities include:

  • Diarrheal Disease Prevention and TreatmentMobile Video Units (MVUs)
  • Sales and Medical Detailing Program
  • United Health Network (UHN)
  • Other Behavior Change Communications
  • Targeted Distribution/Emergency Response
Target Populations

People engaging in high-risk behavior including commercial sex workers ("entertainment workers") and their partners ("high-risk urban men"); men who have sex with men; people living with HIV/AIDS; injecting drug users; women of child-bearing age; caretakers of children aged five years and under; forest workers in malaria-endemic areas; adults and children living in malaria-endemic areas.

Latest News

Donors

Partners

  • Cambodian Government