EPN - Ecumenical Pharmaceutical Network

This edition includes:

News

The Global Fund online Forum for eighth funding round
HIV and AIDS
Tuberculosis (TB)

Focus on Resources

Websites
Publications
Courses 

The Global Fund online Forum for eighth funding round

To help applicants in proposal preparation, the Global Fund has created an online Forum on http://myglobalfund.org. This Forum supplements the information provided from the Secretariat and provides applicants with the opportunity to benefit from real-time questions and answers and to share lessons learned regarding proposal development. Guidelines and proposal forms are available on the Global Fund's website

www.theglobalfund.org. The deadline for accepting proposals is 1^st July 2008.

HIV and AIDS

New ARVs added to the WHO list of pre-qualified medicinal products

The WHO pre-qualification programme has added seven ARVs - three fixed-dose combinations (FDC) and four single ARVs - to the list of pre-qualified medicinal products for HIV treatment.

http://healthtech.who.int/pq/status/ProductRegistry.aspx?list=ha

Updates on antiretroviral prescribing information for children

Dosing recommendations for the use of the protease inhibitor atazanavir (Reyataz) in children have been revised. The revisions indicate that atazanavir should not be given to babies aged below three because of a risk of a type of brain damage.

http://www.aidsmap.com/en/news/80F577BE-9DFE-4796-B4A7-BC9E0CB33149.asp

Cotrimoxazole for children with HIV highly cost-effective

According to analysis of data from the Children with HIV Antibiotic Prophylaxis (CHAP) trial published in the March 2008 edition of AIDS, Cotrimoxazole prophylaxis for children with HIV in Zambia is highly cost-effective. Cotrimoxazole prophylaxis in children aged one to 14 years reduced the risk of death by 43%, and also reduced the rates of hospitalisation.

http://www.aidsmap.com/en/news/79DBACD7-D9FA-4575-8D08-513029359282.asp

Improving adherence to Antiretroviral Treatment (ART)

An assessment of how ART programs track patient adherence in Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda, conducted by the International Network for the Rational Use of Medicines (INRUD) in 2006, found that facilities routinely gathered useful information that could be used to monitor adherence and treatment defaulting. However the ways the facilities gathered and analyzed data varied. To help identify patients at risk, monitor ART program performance and therefore improve treatment adherence, INRUD developed standardized definitions of adherence and defaulting and defined standard indicators. http://www.inrud.org/INRUD-IAA/index.cfm

TUBERCULOSIS (TB)

TB antibiotic use has 'resistance side-effect'

According to a study published in The Lancet on 24^th March 2008, an antibiotic used to combat multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis in children could be leading to resistance to a similar drug in an unrelated bacterium that causes pneumococcal disease.

http://www.scidev.net/en/health/antibiotic-resistance/news/tb-antibiotic-use-has-resistance-side-effect-.html

FOCUS ON RESOURCES:

WEBSITES :

Reseau Medicament et Developpment (ReMED)/Network for Medicines and development

ReMeD works to improve better access to quality drugs in developing countries. The Network coordinates an international network of 2000 professionals working for sustainable health development. ReMeD has been utilizing its expertise to facilitate information exchange in the field of pharmaceuticals through a forum on the essential drugs on the Internet, e-med since 1997. For many years ReMeD has been coordinating public awareness campaigns in France and in francophone Africa and has been organizing training courses in the good management and dispensing of ARVs.

http://www.remed.org/html/remed.html

PUBLICATIONS:

Interagency guidelines: A model quality assurance system for procurement agencies
These recommendations are aimed at assisting organizations purchasing pharmaceutical products, vaccines, or other health sector goods to design and implement a uniform and harmonized system that will ensure procurement of pharmaceutical products of defined quality for supply to patients on a mutually recognized process of prequalification.

http://www.who.int/medicines/publications/ModelQualityAssurance.pdf

How to investigate drug use in health facilities

The purpose of this report is to highlight selected drug use indicators in a given region, country or individual health facility.

 http://www.who.int/medicinedocs/collect/edmweb/pdf/s2289e/s2289e.pdf

This guide aims to help people in churches to talk openly, accurately and compassionately about why HIV spreads and what can be done to stop its spread.

http://www.e-alliance.ch/hivaids_exploringsolutions.jsp

WHO Tuberculosis control 2008 report - surveillance, planning and financing

This annual report compiles data from over 200 countries and territories which monitor the scale-up and direction of TB epidemics, the implementation and impact of the Stop TB Strategy, and progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDG). The report can be viewed on:

http://www.who.int/tb/publications/global_report/2008/summary/en/index.html

Setting up community health programmes

In its third edition, this manual is designed to equip and empower health workers in both rural and urban locations around the world. It covers the basic principles of community based health care, starting a programme, setting up specific subject programmes, and managing the personnel, finance and operation of them. It addresses the needs of field health workers, programme managers and those in front line of health care, as well as administrators, health planners and students.

Topics covered include: Health Awareness and Motivation, Learning about the Community, Setting up Community Programs, and Managing Personnel and Finance.

http://www.hesperian.org/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=HB&Product_Code=B809&Category_Code=HEB

Women’s HIV and AIDS Treatment literacy toolkit

Southern Africa HIV and AIDS Information Dissemination Service (SAfAIDS) have disseminated a HIV and AIDS treatment literacy kit which focuses on the specific and unique treatment needs of women as a response to the regionally identified gap in basic knowledge levels among women and girls on HIV and AIDS treatment.

The toolkit aims to empower girls and women with accurate and relevant information to enable them to make informed decisions in terms of accessing and demanding their rights to full participation in antiretroviral treatment programmes, fortify their coping mechanisms in adhering to ART, and be able to support their counterparts within the same continuum of care.

http://www.safaids.org.zw/viewinfo.cfm?id=196&linkid=4&siteid=1

COURSES:

Promoting Rational Use of Medicines in the Community
Date: 29^th June – 11^th July 2008
Venue: University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa
For further details please contact: Hazel Bradley at hbradley@uwc.ac.za

Rational Management of Medicines – A focus on HIV and AIDS, TB and Malaria
Date: 3^rd – 14^th November 2008
Venue: Ifakara, Tanzania
Application deadline:  31^st August 2008
For further details please visit: http://www.sti.ch

Health District Management
Date: 17^th November – 5^th December 2008
Venue: Ifakara, Tanzania
Application deadline: 31^st August 2008
For further details please visit: http://www.sti.ch

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