Neglected Tropical Diseases continue to be a focus in Haiti

Haitian school students receive medication to treat lymphatic filariasis and soil-transmitted helminths. More than 1 million people were treated in the North department of Haiti during this MDA.

IMA World Health/Laura Burkey

In an effort to eliminate lymphatic filariasis in Port-au-Prince, the American and Haitian governments joined together. Recently, former President Jimmy Carter, Haitian Minister of Public Health and Population Dr. Florence Duperval Guillaume and U.S. Ambassador to Haiti Kenneth Merten kicked off a $1.5-million Mass Drug Administration campaign. IMA World Health’s Haiti Senior Program Manager Dr. Abdel Direny was also in attendance.

Haitian Minister of Public Health and Population Dr. Florence Duperval Guillaume and former President Jimmy Carter pose for a photo together at the MDA Kickoff event in Port-au-Prince.

Haiti is one of four countries in the Western Hemisphere where the disease is still present, and Port-au-Prince is the last area in the country to begin the treatment regimen. Mass Drug administration in metropolitan areas can be very challenging, especially in post disaster settings such as Port-au-Prince.

IMA is no stranger to the fight against neglected tropical diseases in Haiti. Since 2007, IMA has implemented a USAID-funded mass drug administration program that administers safe drugs to prevent and treat diseases such as lymphatic filariasis and soil-transmitted helminths.

Last year, IMA helped treat over 4.7 million people under the Neglected Tropical Disease Control Program in 8 departments in Haiti.

In just the month of October, more than 1 million people were treated in the North department of the country.

The program has been so successful that national coverage is expected to be complete by early 2012.

“We appreciate the U.S. collaboration and support in the fight against Filariasis and we commit to work, with the participation of all sectors of Haitian society, to eliminate the disease in the country,” Guillaume said.

The new $1.5 million campaign will be funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and will be implemented by the University of Notre Dame and Haiti’s Ministry of Public Health and Population.