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Sustaining the Fight against Leprosy in Western Pacific
Posted on 26 May 2010 by
Participants at a recent Workshop in Nadi welcomed WHO’s Enhanced Global Strategy for Further Reducing the Disease Burden Due to Leprosy (2011-2015).
WHO said that the continuing detection of new cases of leprosy demonstrates a need for strategic action to sustain good quality leprosy services by integrating leprosy control into general health services.
All but two of the countries that make up the Western Pacific Region had succeeded in reducing the number of new cases of leprosy to less than one person per 10,000 at the end of 2000. The Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia are continuing efforts to reach this level.
In 2008, the most recent year for which statistics are available, 5 859 new cases were detected in the Region. China and the Philippines reported more than a 1,000 cases. Countries reporting fewer than ten cases were Brunei, Hong Kong, China Macao Special Administrative Region, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Cook Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, Japan, Mongolia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Republic of Korea, Samoa, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Wallis and Fortuna.
In collaboration with American Leprosy Missions and The Leprosy Mission International, programme reviews were conducted in August 2008 in the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia. These focussed on the prevention of disabilities, rehabilitation capacities, identification of local partners and an assessment of training needs.
Workshops on sustaining leprosy activities will be conducted for those countries still reporting more than 100 cases of leprosy annually, including Cambodia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and Viet Nam.
The Representative of WHO for the South Pacific, Dr Chen Ken, said: “The participants in the Workshop identified problems with a low burden of leprosy in the Pacific Island countries and areas – decrease of expertise, accessibility of healthcare and shortage of human resources – as well as helped in identifying sustainable solutions.”
Epidemiological Review of Leprosy in the Western Pacific Region 2007:
http://www.wpro.who.int/internet/resources.ashx/leprosy/2007_Leprosy_Review.pdf
WHO Western Pacific Regional Leprosy Situation 2005:
http://www.wpro.who.int/media_centre/fact_sheets/fs_20070129.htm
Categories: International Collaboration