The Soul Beat 181 - Malaria Communication
In this issue of The Soul Beat:
- PROMOTING NET USE for malaria prevention...
- New Soul Beat Africa MALARIA THEME SITE...
- Using MEDIA AND ICTs FOR MALARIA CONTROL...
- CONTRIBUTE malaria-related information...
- Communication for MALARIA MOBILISING AND ADVOCACY ...
This edition of The Soul Beat looks at how communication is being used to prevent and control malaria in Africa. The newsletter includes programme experiences, strategic thinking documents, and materials that highlight how communication is being used to promote bednets, the use of media and information and communication technologies (ICTS) around malaria, and information about mobilising and advocacy.
If you would like your organisation's communication work or research and resource documents to be featured on the Soul Beat Africa website and in The Soul Beat newsletters, please contact soulbeat@comminit.com
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1. Long Lasting Insecticide Net Distribution Campaign - Botswana
Between February and March 2009, the first of a series of campaigns was organised in the Okavango sub-district of Botswana to distribute Long Lasting Insecticide Treated Nets (LLINs) to mothers and children. The campaign used a communication for development (C4D) strategy which included training various key persons involved in malaria control and prevention (distributors, supervisors, demonstrators, and follow-up teams) on malaria and LLIN knowledge, mass distribution of nets, interactive demonstrations, and monitoring of distribution. The campaign was initiated by the Ministry of Health, Okavango sub-district, and the Clinton Foundation, with LLINs acquired through Malaria No More and the United National Children's Fund (UNICEF).
2. Use of Insecticide Treated Nets by Pregnant Women and Associated Factors in a Predominantly Rural Population in Northern Ethiopia
By Wakgari Deressa and Mebrahtom Belay
This article, published in Tropical Medicine and International Health in October 2008, describes the use of insecticide treated nets (ITNs) among pregnant women in northern Ethiopia and examines factors associated with ITN access and use. Knowledge of malaria, its cause and preventive measures, treatment-seeking behaviour, and possession and use of ITNs by pregnant women and under-five children were ascertained through interview and observation. According to the article, household ownership of ITNs and their use by pregnant women is promising with the current efforts to scale up ITNs implementation, but the gap between ownership and use remains high.
3. Rapid Android for Malaria Prevention - Nigeria
This programme uses a new software application for Google's Android mobile phone operating system that turns the mobile device into a high-speed data collector and analyser to help relief workers get information and distribute aid more quickly. The application, called Rapid Android, was developed by the United Nations Children's Fund's (UNICEF) Innovations Unit with tech-for-change developer Dimagi. In January 2008, the programme was launched in Nigeria to help the World Bank, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and other partners monitor the deployment of bed nets for malaria prevention.
4. Stop Malaria in your Community: Nets Discussion Guide for Use by Village Health Teams
Published in January 2010 by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Communication Programs (CCP), this discussion guide is meant to be used together with the "Stop Malaria in Your Community" grain sack charts. It is designed to help facilitators hold group discussions with community members to help them understand malaria transmission, prevention, and treatment, as well as to encourage them help stop malaria in their communities. The guide addresses topics such as sleeping under a treated mosquito net every night to prevent malaria, and how to hang and care for LLTNs.
5. A Healthy Malaria-Free Life Campaign - Angola
Pathfinder, with support from the ExxonMobil Foundation, is working to improve maternal and child health in Pathfinder-supported maternity wards in the municipalities of Cacuaco and Kilamba Kiaxi in Angola by focusing on malaria treatment and prevention among pregnant women and children under the age of five. From 2009 to 2011, the Healthy Malaria-Free Life project is working to promote and monitor the distribution and use of ITNs to mothers, integrate malaria prevention into existing family planning services, provide malaria prevention information to the community, and mobilise community members to take action towards malaria prevention.
6. Communication and Malaria Initiative in Tanzania (COMMIT) - Tanzania
Launched in 2008, the Communication and Malaria Initiative in Tanzania (COMMIT) is a 4-year project led by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Communication Programmes (CCP) in partnership with Jhpiego, Population Services International (PSI), the Research Triangle Institute (RTI), PMI, and the Tanzania Ministry of Health and National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP). Specifically, COMMIT supports the NMCP Communication Strategy objectives of influencing positive behaviour change among audiences through a comprehensive approach, by improving the flow of information to key audiences, and through advocacy to raise the profile of malaria. COMMIT integrates mass media and community-based activities designed to increase individuals' perceptions of the threat posed by malaria as well as their confidence in their ability to take actions that effectively counter this threat. The project works to persuade households to obtain and use ITNs.
7. Communication Impact: Rural Communication Activities Increase Net Use in Tanzania
This document provides an evaluation of the Communication and Malaria Initiative in Tanzania (COMMIT). The evaluation showed that since 2008, COMMIT has directly reached more than three million people through a variety of community mobilisation and outreach activities. All activities are focused on the main malaria messages of sleeping under ITNs, malaria in pregnancy, and under-five case management. Since the 2009 survey, more than 1,000 community members have been trained as community change agents (CCAs).
Announcing the NEW Soul Beat Africa's MALARIA THEME SITE!
We are pleased to introduce you to the new Soul Beat Africa theme site on Malaria, which offers a space to access and share information on malaria and communication. For information about experiences, thinking, materials, and opportunities related to using communication for malaria prevention and control, please click here.
MEDIA AND INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES (ICTs) FOR MALARIA CONTROL
8. Zinduka! Malaria Haikubaliki - Tanzania
Launched in February 2009, Zinduka! Malaria Haikubaliki ("Wake up! Malaria is Unacceptable!" in Swahili) is a national umbrella campaign in Tanzania designed to bring together many different partners and activities for malaria prevention and control under one recognisable logo. Zinduka! works with partners in the media, music industry, government, and private sector to use media and entertainment to create a culture of net usage, fever testing, and appropriate treatment.
9. The Stop Malaria Project - Uganda
Launched in September 2008, the Stop Malaria Project (SMP) is a 5-year initiative which uses a combination of approaches, including behaviour change interventions, service delivery strengthening, and institutional capacity building, to rapidly scale up established interventions for malaria prevention, diagnosis, and treatment in Uganda. The project is managed by the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Communication Programs (CCP) and implemented in partnership with the Malaria Consortium, Communication for Development Foundation Uganda (CDFU), the Infections Diseases Institute, and Uganda Health Marketing group. Community mobilisation is being undertaken using the village health team (VHT) strategy developed by the Uganda Ministry of Health.
10. SMS for Life - Tanzania
Launched in September 2009, "SMS for Life" is an effort to prevent malaria in Tanzania through the use of mobile phones, SMS (text) messages, and electronic mapping technology. The process involves generating information on stock availability of artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) and quinine injectables and delivering this information on a weekly basis to health facilities. This visibility will, it is hoped, help eliminate sudden shortages of antimalarial stock - even in the most remote areas. SMS for Life is the product of a public-private partnership initiated by Novartis under the umbrella of the Roll Back Malaria Partnership, and involving IBM, Vodafone, and the Ministry of Health in Tanzania.
Are you using communication in your malaria prevention and control activities in Africa? Please send us your information for inclusion on the Soul Beat Africa Malaria theme site, and possible inclusion of our malaria-specific Soul Beat Africa Extra newsletter. Send an email to: soulbeat@comminit.com
MOBILISATION AND ADVOCACY AROUND MALARIA
11. Stopping a Killer: Preventing Malaria in Our Communities - A Guide to Help Faith Leaders Educate Congregations and Communities About Malaria
By Kathy Erb
This sermon guide, published in March 2010, was designed to help Muslim and Christian religious leaders understand the dangers of malaria and what they can do to help save the lives of the people under their care. According to the publisher, the Center for Interfaith Action on Global Poverty (CIFA), religious leaders have a profound ability to change statistics of people dying of malaria and to lead the fight against malaria at the community level. As respected and trusted local leaders, they have credibility and influence in the lives of people in their communities; thus, they need to be equipped to use this influence to educate their congregations about malaria control.
12. The Nine Steps District Malaria Advocacy Model: A Guide to Promoting District Level Malaria Advocacy
By Emmanuel Fiagbey
This guide, published by Voices for a Malaria Free Future in 2007, outlines the steps needed to engage district leadership in planning, delivering, monitoring, and evaluating their malaria advocacy activities. According to the guide, improving participation of leadership of all kinds at the district level is key to effective planning and implementation of malaria control programmes, as well as to generating the needed support and resources for implementation of such programmes.
13. Advocacy in Zambia - Malaria Control and Evaluation Partnership in Africa (MACEPA)
This factsheet, published by PATH in 2007, provides an overview of the approach to advocacy that the Malaria Control and Evaluation Partnership in Africa (MACEPA) in Zambia takes to ensure that preventing and treating malaria is a priority in government offices, district health agencies, and the homes of those who are vulnerable to the disease. The report explains that to sustain advocacy at the provincial and district levels, MACEPA works to ensure that health officials, political leaders, and implementing partners are familiar with the national malaria plan and understand their role in it.
Related previous issues of The Soul Beat include:
The Soul Beat 150 - Malaria and Communication in Africa
The Soul Beat 113 - Communication for Malaria Prevention and Treatment
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