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April 2012 Issue        
In This Issue
GSK and CWW Partnership Announcement
New Leadership and Opportunities for CWW
Engaging the Education Sector in STH Control
Bolivia Launches Pilot Program for Deworming
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Greetings!
Dr. David Addiss, MD, MPH

The last few months have been ones of dynamic change and increasing global momentum to control soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH). Most notable, perhaps, was a meeting in the United Kingdom on January 30, 2012, which was marked by the release of the London Declaration on Neglected Tropical Diseases. At this meeting, several major organizations, including pharmaceutical companies, bilateral aid agencies, private foundations, the World Health Organization, and the World Bank, pledged to "chart a new course toward health and sustainability among the world's poorest communities to a stronger, healthier future." More specifically for STH, they committed themselves to "expand and extend drug access programs to ensure the necessary supply of drugs and other interventions to help control STH by 2020."

 

As part of the London Declaration, both Johnson & Johnson and GlaxoSmithKline pledged to extend until 2020 their donations of mebendazole and albendazole, respectively, for STH control. Together, they have committed to donating up to 600 million treatments each year through 2020--almost 5 billion treatments! The potential impact on the health of children worldwide is hard to imagine. Children Without Worms (CWW) looks forward to working with our many partners to be good stewards of the donations and to ensure that they benefit those most in need.  

 

In this edition of the Quarterly Dose we are pleased to announce the strengthening of our partnership with GlaxoSmithKline, which has joined Johnson & Johnson and the Task Force for Global Health to support CWW. The partnership between Johnson & Johnson and GlaxoSmithKline marks the first time that two pharmaceutical companies have collaborated to provide, free of charge, the same class of drugs for the same condition (STH) on such a massive scale. CWW is privileged to be part of this bold new venture in global health.

 

In his book Lila, the American writer and philosopher Robert Pirsig reflects on the nature of change and its relation to quality, which he describes as either dynamic or static. One experiences dynamic quality during periods of great change; without dynamic quality, individuals and organizations cannot grow. In contrast, static quality provides structure; without static quality, individuals and organizations cannot last. Both are required for life, but Pirsig considers dynamic quality to be superior.

 

I imagine that Pirsig would find himself very much at home with the dynamic growth that is now unfolding for global STH control. I invite you, the reader, to peruse this issue of the Quarterly Dose and taste this dynamic quality for yourself.

 

Sincerely,

 

David Addiss, MD, MPH

Director  

Children Without Worms

GSK and CWW Partnership Announcement 
Children Without Worms (CWW) and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) recently announced their formal partnership. Now, with commitments for donations of deworming medication from GSK and CWW founder Johnson & Johnson, a combined 600 million doses of medication will be available each year to treat school-age children around the world who are at risk for soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infection. Plus, at the London Declaration on NTDs in late January, both companies pledged to extend these commitments through 2020. Read more...

 

New Leadership and Opportunities for CWW
STH Advisory Committee Leadership Change
From L to R, Dr. Vicente Belizario (University of the Philippines), Bill Lin (Johnson & Johnson), Ibrahim Jabr, and Dr. Susan Zimicki 
This past October, the STH Advisory Committee, formerly the Mebendazole Advisory Committee, convened its 7th annual  meeting in Geneva. The meeting provided an opportunity for CWW and its partners in STH control to come together to focus on several important goals. First, to develop strategies that will enable countries to successfully use the combined 600 million doses of deworming drugs that Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) will donate annually. Second, to explore CWW's role in supporting a comprehensive control strategy for STH through engagement with the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and education sectors. A highlight at the meeting's close was recognition of the accomplishments of outgoing committee chair Mr. Ibrahim Jabr, and welcoming of incoming chair Dr. Susan Zimicki. Read more...

     

Engaging the Education Sector in STH Control
Kim Koporc at Lao PDR Joint Task Force Meeting
CWW's Kim Koporc hands over deworming medication at Joint Task Force Meeting in Lao PDR
 
Health programs aimed at children are increasingly relying on the infrastructure and personnel at schools to carry out simple health interventions like deworming and hygiene education. This makes sense because teachers are often the most informed people to determine the best time of year to carry out mass drug administration campaigns and the types of messages that resound with students of various ages. At CWW, we recognize the enormous contributions the education sector can make to STH control efforts. For this reason, we examine ways to collaborate and strengthen partnerships with Ministries of Education and their equivalents in our program countries. CWW has additional plans for building bridges with the education sector in the coming years. Read more... 

 

Bolivia Launches Pilot Program for Deworming   
SEDES Health Personnel Bolivia
SEDES health workers in Bolivia during the 2008 fasciola project that informed development of the STH control pilot project 
In 2011, Izumi Foundation awarded CWW a grant to help Bolivia's Ministry of Health and Sport (MSyD) develop and implement an STH control pilot project. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) was asked to participate in the project due to their success with a similar project done in 2008 to address fasciola infection. The STH control project, designed around the assumption that infection rates strongly relate to the ecological conditions of an area, will start by mapping "ecoregions." Then they will use the approach used by the fasciola project to demonstrate proof of concept in three different communities. Ultimately, the success of the project could lead to a longer-term commitment to STH control in Bolivia. Read more...

If you are interested in learning more, please visit the Children Without Worms web site or fill out the contact form on our site.
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