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Adapting essential care programs to Covid-19 pandemic times | Collections | MSF Science Portal

As the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic grips the world, one of its most devastating indirect effects is the disruption to medical services for preventing and treating other life-threatening diseases—especially in countries with already-fragile health systems. For MSF and other global health actors this means not only responding to Covid-19 directly but also assessing its impact on other essential care and then adapting programs so they can keep serving patients despite the enormous obstacles.

In this Collection you will find a selection of published articles and conference content from this year’s MSF Scientific Days 2021 conference content, encompassing a range of approaches, settings and medical challenges—from malaria, TB and HIV/AIDS prevention and care to digital health promotion and sexual and reproductive health.

Collection Content

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World Hepatitis Day 2023
World Hepatitis Day 2023
Viral hepatitis is a major cause of disease and death globally. To mark World Hepatitis Day (July 28th) we present a selection of recent MSF research exploring how to effectively deploy powerful medical tools that could turn the tide on hepatitis C and E—but now reach only a tiny fraction of people who desperately need them, especially in low-resource and emergency settings. For hepatitis C, where groundbreaking new antiviral drugs can cure nearly all patients, MSF is piloting simplified, community-based models of care that offer rapid screening, diagnosis, and treatment under one roof. Some programs focus on the complex needs of highly vulnerable, hard-to-reach populations, such as people co-infected with HIV or TB or who inject drugs. Turning to prevention, an ongoing vaccination campaign against hepatitis E in an outbreak setting is showing early signs of short-term protection. Final results from this South Sudanese refugee camp, where poor sanitation and water quality regularly lead to outbreaks, should help plug a key evidence gap that—along with other barriers discussed in a commentary article—impedes widespread uptake of the vaccine.
World Hepatitis Day 2022
World Hepatitis Day 2022
Each year hundreds of millions of people suffer from chronic or acute liver disease caused by hepatitis viruses, and over one million die. To mark World Hepatitis Day (July 28th) we bring you a selection of MSF research exploring how to better prevent, identify and treat hepatitis infection in lower-income countries and emergency contexts where the burden is heaviest. For example, in a South Sudanese camp for displaced people—a type of setting where poor sanitation and water quality regularly lead to hepatitis E outbreaks—MSF and the Ministry of Health (MoH) are conducting the world’s first reactive vaccination campaign against this disease, and evaluating the process and outcomes. In Cambodia, MSF and MoH collaborators found that a simplified community-based model of care for hepatitis C was safe and highly effective in diagnosing patients and in curing them with new antiviral drugs. It was also cost-effective, according to studies in several countries and patient populations. And these new drugs were safe and effective even in patients also being treated for drug-resistant tuberculosis.
Combatting antibiotic resistance 2022
Combatting antibiotic resistance 2022
Resistance to antibiotics is a growing public health crisis, especially in countries with fragile health systems and in regions at war. The World Health Organization has estimated that antibiotic-resistant bacteria caused nearly 1.3 million deaths in 2019, a toll that will increase significantly in the coming years if effective action is not taken. To mark World Antimicrobial Awareness Week 2022 (18-24 November) we present a snapshot of MSF’s recent work on responding to this growing threat. Since many humanitarian settings lack laboratory capacity to diagnose these infections, MSF and partners have developed two new technologies with the potential to dramatically expand the availability of accurate diagnosis—allowing clinicians to then tailor antibiotic treatment accordingly. Other work from diverse contexts describes practices and challenges related to optimizing rational antibiotic use within health facilities and communities. Lastly, several studies characterize the patterns and prevalence of antibiotic resistance among MSF patients, from hospitalized neonates in Central African Republic to acute trauma patients in Haiti and Yemen.
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Conference Material
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Video

TACTiC - Implementation du nouvel algorithme oms pour le diagnostic de la tuberculose pulmonaire chez les enfants au Niger

Farouk Moussa Mamane O, Sannino L, Alphazazi S, Rabiou D
2024-05-03 • MSF Paediatric Days 2024
2024-05-03 • MSF Paediatric Days 2024
Journal Article
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Research

Shifting to tele‑mental health in humanitarian and crisis settings: an evaluation of Médecins Sans Frontières experience during the COVID‑19 pandemic

Ibragimov K, Palma M, Keane G, Ousley J, Carreño C,  et al.
2022-02-14 • Conflict and Health
2022-02-14 • Conflict and Health
BACKGROUND
'Tele-Mental Health (MH) services' are an increasingly important way to expand care to underserved groups in low-resource settings. In order to continue providing psychiat...
Conference Material
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Video

Impact of COVID-19 on HIV/ AIDS service delivery in Philippines and Pakistan

Hossain FN
2021-08-26 • MSF Scientific Days Asia 2021
2021-08-26 • MSF Scientific Days Asia 2021
Conference Material
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Slide Presentation

Video/Virtually Observed Therapy for patients with drug-resistant tuberculosis in Eswatini: a rapid response to COVID-19 lockdown measures

Daka M
2021-05-20 • MSF Scientific Days International 2021: Innovation
2021-05-20 • MSF Scientific Days International 2021: Innovation
Conference Material
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Slide Presentation

Overcoming lockdown restrictions by digitising health promotion

Hein J
2021-05-20 • MSF Scientific Days International 2021: Innovation
2021-05-20 • MSF Scientific Days International 2021: Innovation
Conference Material
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Abstract

Feasibility of large-scale mass drug administration for malaria in Angumu health zone, Ituri, Democratic Republic of Congo

Sterk E, Newport T, Mahamat TA, Gitahi P, Mandagot JJ,  et al.
2021-05-19 • MSF Scientific Days International 2021: Research
2021-05-19 • MSF Scientific Days International 2021: Research
INTRODUCTION
Conflict in DRC’s northeast has led to large-scale displacement. MSF has supported around 50,000 internally displaced people, together with the host community, in Angumu...
Journal Article
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Commentary

Tuberculosis preventive therapy for children and adolescents: an emergency response to the COVID-19 pandemic

Mohr-Holland E, Douglas-Jones B, Apolisi I, Ngambu N, Mathee S,  et al.
2021-03-01 • Lancet Child and Adolescent Health
2021-03-01 • Lancet Child and Adolescent Health
Journal Article
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Commentary

Now is the time: a call for increased access to contraception and safe abortion care during the COVID-19 pandemic

Kumar M, Daly M, de Plecker E, Jamet C, McRae M,  et al.
2020-07-20 • BMJ Global Health
2020-07-20 • BMJ Global Health
SUMMARY BOX

• The COVID-19 pandemic has begun to severely limit access to sexual and reproductive healthcare, including contraception and safe abortion care (SAC), which have h...
Adapting essential care programs to Covid-19 pandemic times

Adapting essential care programs to Covid-19 pandemic times