International Program
Neglected Tropical Diseases

Working alongside the Món Clínic Foundation in the Makeni Region in Sierra Leone, the goal of the project is to bolster clinical and laboratory-based diagnoses and evaluate areas of community transmission of schistosomiasis and other NTDs that affect the abdomen in the Makeni Region in Sierra Leone.  

The project will involve a broad range of actions including the development of clinical diagnostics skills through training on clinical abdominal ultrasounds, and laboratory skills development for diagnosing schistosomiasis and other NTDs. There will also be community actions on WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) to detect the main areas of transmissions (hotspots) where the local population could pick up diseases, to avoid new cases. 

In collaboration with Prodein, the project works with a 360º vision in the fight against echinococcosis in a region of Peru where there are very high rates of the disease.  

Actions will run using a One Health approach to halt transmission through support from veterinarian, community prevention, and health education at schools. Diagnosis and treatment will be available for people, as well as prophylactics for intermediate hosts (dogs and sheep) to cut short the parasite’s life cycle and, as such, end the disease.  

This is the second stage of a project implemented in the area before COVID-19, which seeks to be more ambitious and well-rounded by integrating the veterinary aspect of the project

In collaboration with the Nor Sud Foundation with whom we have already worked with great results in the fight against Chagas, the goal of the project is to develop a holistic approach to tackling Chagas in the Gran Chaco region of Bolivia.  

We will run training and education sessions at the health centers and education for health activities in the communities.. What's more, we will run activities at schools to promote knowledge transfer from children to adults, as well as vigilance and vector control in communities at Vector Information Points.  

All the activities planned to tackle the disease involve bolstering public systems and a commitment to working with communities either through outreach, the Vector Information Points, health volunteers, or schools.  

Much like vector controls, special attention will be paid to epidemiological monitoring to keep track of what is happening with the disease in the area to make evidence-based decisions.