Malaria initiative reaches more than 140,000

 MORE than 140,000 people have benefited from the home-based management of malaria programme by the Population Services International since it started last year.

It has trained more than 500 community volunteers in East Sepik and East New Britain. The volunteers have conducted more than 12,000 rapid tests and distributed more than 4,000 cycles of Mala-1 (new malaria drug) to people with positive results.

Programme manager Elijah John said: “HMM is a strategy to deliver life-saving treatment for children under the age of five from malaria where there is low access to health facility based services.

“It is important that we work together to protect Papua New Guinea’s future by reducing the burden of malaria at the community level.”

With Save the Children and Burnet Institute, PSI trains and supports community volunteers to administer rapid diagnostic tests on patients with fever and administer Mala-1 ACT (atermisinin combination therapy) for those who test positive.

Since 2009, PSI has implemented activities to reduce malaria morbidity and mortality in PNG through the national malaria control programme. 

In addition to malaria treatment, PSI focuses on improving mosquito net use and national malaria control effort through the Yumi Rausim Malaria mass media campaign and interpersonal communications delivered at the community level.

PSI works in partnership with the National Department of Health, Rotarians Against Malaria and Oil Search Health Foundation.