March 2012

  • March 09, 2012

    "A New Century: African Women, Health and the Future of Development" In Honor of International Women’s Day

    Elsie Minja-Mwaniki

    JHU∙CCP | Communications Specialist

    A woman’s health is important to not only herself, but to her children and community. Women’s health is necessary for overall prosperity. In Africa the statistics are troubling. One in every twenty six women dies from a complication related to pregnancy and childbirth and women of childbearing age are the demographic group hardest-hit by the HIV/AIDS crisis. In order for measurable progress to be achieved in women’s health, discussions, pledges, and strategies need to become concrete actions.

    IWD Event 1

    In honor of International Women's Day, Africare held a meeting on the state of women’s health in Africa at the National Press Club. The event was co-hosted by the United Nations Foundation and  Global Health and Diplomacy.  In the welcome address, Rep. Karen Bass stated that as as a member of the foreign affairs committee in Congress, she would ensure that discourse surrounding women’s health in Africa would be one of her top priorities.

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  • March 07, 2012

    eHealth in the Field: Inspiring Women and Applied Technology

    Cassandra Mickish

    JHU∙CCP | Communications Specialist

    This past weekend the Bangladesh Knowledge Management Initiative (BKMI) team went to rural Gaibandha in northern Bangladesh. We observed two eHealth programs in action, hoping to learn from their experiences and explore ways to collaborate. 

    One program that we visited was the Mobile Alliance for Maternal Action (MAMA) initiative.  This project provides informational SMS (text) and voice messages in Bangla (the primary language of Bangladesh) to pregnant women and new moms, as well as their husbands, mothers-in-law, and other decision makers in the family.  They receive one to two messages a week that are tailored to the week of pregnancy or the age of the child.  Messages remind moms and their families about what to expect during pregnancy, warning signs of complications, preparation for childbirth including where to go to deliver, healthy nutrition for mom and baby, breastfeeding, and other issues.  The program sends regular health information to families who may have limited access to clinics and providers.  Moms that we visited were able to recall messages they had heard and tell us about the resulting changes they made in their diet to improve nutrition.

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  • Women of the World
    March 07, 2012

    What Does it Mean to be a Woman in 2012?

    Rebecca Shore

    JHU∙CCP | Communications Specialist

    In this blog series, I try to shine light on positive experiences and progress towards equality for women. But these “bright spots” don’t change the overall picture—that empowering women is still an uphill struggle. As International Women’s Day approaches again this year on March 8th, I am constantly reminded of the painful, oppressive, and unjust practices that continue to afflict women and girls worldwide..

    International Women's Day

    If it were somehow possible to average out the experiences of all women into a “typical woman,” the picture would be bleak. Compared to men, women are devalued in the workplace, the home, and the community.

    Women are disproportionately affected by poverty and homelessness, and are more likely to be targets of violence—particularly intimate partner violence.

    In many countries in the Global South, girls are likely to be married before they turn 18, often against their free will.  

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  • March 07, 2012

    Supporting Safe Disclosure for Children

    Riona Judge McCormack

    REPSSI | Communications Officer

    A growing body of evidence[i] shows that HIV-positive children who are aware of their HIV status show greater adherence to treatment and an improved sense of well-being. Disclosing their HIV status to children can help ensure they live healthier, longer lives. The most recent WHO guidelines[ii] recommend that “Children of school age should be told their HIV positive status; younger children should be told their status incrementally … in preparation for full disclosure.”.

    Nurse Counsellor Photo for Supporting Safe Disclosure for Children

    Yet despite this, many children living with HIV are not aware of their status. REPSSI (the Regional Psychosocial Support Initiative) and partners have found that parents and caregivers struggle with telling their HIV-positive children about their status, and need additional support in doing so.

    We must remember also that disclosure to children is a process which must be handled carefully. Health workers, counsellors, and parents require training and preparation, so that appropriate support is provided before, during, and after disclosure.

    What can be done to assist parents and health care workers with disclosure to children? REPSSI has developed an initiative to improve physical, mental and social health for children, which can help answer to this question.

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  • Health Innovations
    March 01, 2012

    A Revolutionary Malaria Diagnostic Test

    Stephen Goldstein

    JHU∙CCP | Senior Consultant

    By 2015, an estimated 500 million smartphone users across the world will be using some sort of mobile healthcare application, according to industry figures cited by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In the same timeframe, an estimated three million people will have lost their lives to malaria. One mobile healthcare app which may make a dent in malaria deaths is Lifelens, a new app that can help diagnose malaria with 94% accuracy from a drop of blood.

     “Malaria will kill two children every minute this year,” says Lifelens team member Cy Khormaee from the Harvard School of Business. Khormaee is one of five graduate students who came together from across academic disciplines and four universities to become the co-founders of Lifelens.  According to Lifelens, approximately $1 billion a year is spent treating malaria—but more than half of that cost is wasted on people who don’t need it. Current diagnostic tests for malaria are only 40% accurate. “The result is a test with a 60% incidence of false positives. Consequently, each false positive will result in medication being delivered to a patient with no need for treatment–effectively wasting that dosage,” says a statement on the site. Additionally, Lifelens contends that treatment of uninfected individuals also increases the likelihood of the parasites' developing resistance to artemisinin-based combination treatment (ACT)—the WHO-recommended first line treatment for the disease.

    Still in the testing stage, Lifelens uses Microsoft Windows Phone 7 software combined with an inexpensive (less than $50) durable spherical  microscopic lens attachment which easily fits on to a smart phone. The camera + lense combination produces high resolution images that can actually show blood cells (details in Lifelens' overview video on YouTube). According to Physicians Weekly, “the cost of conventional rapid diagnostic tests is $3.40 per patient. Using Lifelens, the estimated cost is $0.56 per patient.” Anyone who can operate a basic cell phone can use the app. No special training or language skills are necessary. And it doesn’t need an Internet connection. Lifelens will be sold directly to the medical service administrators of governments and NGOs involved in malaria testing for further distribution to health service providers in the field.

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