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WASH & NTDs at UNC Water and Health Conference

October 11, 2012 by Kerry Gallo

November 1: CWW co-sponsoring an event on WASH for NTD control at UNC Water and Health Conference.

 

2012 UNC Water and Health Conference:
Science, Policy and Innovation Side Event

WASH and the Neglected Tropical Diseases: Bridging the Divide Between Treatment and Prevention Programs to Reduce Prevalence of NTDs

A Discussion of Practical Considerations to WASH for NTD Control

Thursday, Nov. 1, 2012, 1:15 – 3:00 p.m.
Friday Center, UNC Campus, Chapel Hill, North Carolina USA

Visit http://whconference.unc.edu/ for more information about the conference.

 

Sponsored by Children Without Worms (CWW), Emory University's Center for Global Safe Water, and the International Trachoma Initiative

The primary strategy for controlling neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) has been the use of drugs for mass treatment in highly endemic areas. However, treatment alone is unlikely to break the cycle of transmission or result in sustained control of disease. There have been some efforts to control NTDs using targeted water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure and messaging, but until recently, the WASH and NTD sectors have largely operated independently, rarely sharing lessons learned. There is a need to identify the most effective, sustainable, and scalable methods of integrating WASH and NTD control activities, as well as to build a strong evidence base for collaborative programming. This symposium is the first in a series of discussions between the WASH and NTD sectors, investigating opportunities and challenges to collaborative WASH and NTD programming.


Speakers and Discussion Leaders

David Addiss, Director, Children without Worms (CWW)

Matthew Freeman, Assistant Professor, Emory University Center for Global Safe Water (CGSW)

Jack Grimes, Doctoral Researcher, Schistosomiasis Control Initiative (SCI), Imperial College, London

Danny Haddad, Director, International Trachoma Initiative (ITI)

Stephanie Ogden, WASH/NTD Officer, CGSW/CWW/ITI

 

Event Description
Speakers will review the distribution and global burden of three major NTDs reliant on WASH improvements for long-term, sustainable control—soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH), schistosomiasis, and trachoma—and discuss current evidence and knowledge gaps for practical collaboration between WASH and NTDs. Participants will be informed of current approaches to integrated disease control, including mass drug administration, national action plans, and cross-sector prevention efforts. Participants will discuss ongoing compatible and overlapping implementation, research, and advocacy efforts. The group will formulate next steps towards collaboration between the WASH and NTD sectors, continued dialogue and information exchange.

 

Agenda – Thursday, November 1, 2012

Time

Session

Session Description

1:15 – 1:25

Introductions and Welcome (Ogden)
  • Introductions
  • Brief overview of issue
  • Agenda
  • Event objectives

1:25 – 2:05

NTD Presentations

  1. STH (Freeman)
  2. Schistosomiasis (Grimes)
  3. Trachoma (Haddad)
  • Easily digestible overview of three major NTDs impacted by WASH
  • Information about impact of WASH interventions on disease control

2:05 – 2:20

 

Integrated Control of NTDs, Comprehensive Control Strategies, and strategic WASH (Addiss)
  • Overview of integrated activities for NTD control
  • Examples of WASH/NTD control integration (planned WASH/NTD online learning module)
  • Anticipated opportunities and challenges for WASH/NTD collaboration

2:20 – 2:50

Discussion –

 

Challenges and opportunities for collaboration
  • Identify opportunities for collaboration in implementation, advocacy, research, etc.
  • Anticipation of challenges to collaboration
  • Outcomes and next steps
  • Info-gathering to inform WASH & NTD Roundtable

2:50 – 3:00

Closing
  • Conclusions and summary of follow-up steps