Public Health Multitasking: Measles and Malaria
Monday, September 27, 2004 —
The Measles Initiative is integrating innovative malaria prevention activities into mass measles vaccination campaigns in Africa. Current plans call for Togo to be the first country to achieve nationwide, household coverage of insecticide treated bednets (ITNs) in six days with plans to distribute 730,000 ITNs during the December 2004 campaign.
Insecticide-treated bednets (ITNs) are an important tool to fight death and disease due to malaria, especially in Africa south of the Sahara, which accounts for 90% of deaths due to malaria worldwide. One of the goals of the Roll Back Malaria Partnership is that in Africa south of the Sahara, 60% of the people most at risk (young children and pregnant women) will sleep under ITNs.
To date this target has not been met, because too often people who are most in need of the ITNs do not know about them, do not have access to them, or cannot afford them (even a unit cost of $5 is high for a rural African family).
Link to Red Cross