January 2002, issue of the Stop TB Communiqué

STOP TB COMMUNIQUE

Issue 16, January 2002

1. NEWS FROM THE STOP TB PARTNERSHIP SECRETARIAT

In January the first shipment of four drug fixed dose combination tablets (4FDCs) were delivered to Congo Brazzaville, to treat 9,400 patients. In February the first shipment of GDF drugs will arrive in Kenya. These drugs will treat over 80,000 patients.

The four drug fixed dose combination tablet (4FDC) is an exciting new development for the GDF, as it has several advantages over conventional formulations: for example, it's easier for patients (fewer tablets), easier for health workers to dispense, and reduces the risk of monotherapy. Initial concerns that the 4FDC would be more expensive than other formulations have also been addressed - the 4 FDC regimen still costs less than $10!

On 24th January, the GDF convened a meeting of all the partners involved in GDF operations (procurement agent, manufacturer, secretariat, shipping agent and quality assurance agent) to review 2001 activities and to prepare plans for 2002. The meeting was extremely successful and, as had been hoped, new ways to improve GDF operational systems for supply were agreed.

From 28th -29th January, the GDF and the Royal Netherlands Tuberculosis Association (KNCV) held an Informal Meeting to identify and discuss key issues surrounding the quality assurance of drugs provided through the GDF. A particular focus was on the 4FDC, the most recent product added to the list of TB drugs provided by the GDF. The outcome of the meeting was agreement on a set of recommendations to the GDF secretariat on: minimum qualifications, experience and authority necessary for a Quality Assurance agent; quality assurance actions that need to take place for first line TB drugs and in particular 4FDCs; system of monitoring and evaluation of the processes being used for prequalification by the Quality Assurance agent. Again the meeting was very successful and the team would like to thank all those who attended.

Further information on the GDF is available from gdf@who.int

 

The Stop TB Coordinating Board will meet in Osaka, 19-21 February, kindly hosted by the Government of Japan. To build consensus and coordination amongst Stop TB partners on issues that will be presented to the Stop TB Coordinating Board for its meeting the Secretariat has held 3 meetings. Details of the meeting on the GDF are given above, and the other two were as follows:

1) Advocacy and Communications strategic planning: 14-15 January, Geneva, WHO

The draft Strategic Plan for Advocacy & Communications for Stop TB (2002-2005) was discussed in various break-out sessions. Three areas were identified around which to organise the Advocacy and Communications Strategy:

 1) Community mobilization;

2) Private sector partnerships;

3) Global advocacy and communications.

Operational activities in support of this plan were discussed and outlined. The final draft of the plan will be available in the last week of January for comments.

For more information please contact stoptbinfo@who.int

2) Financing: 24 January, Washington DC, USA .

An ad hoc group of experts on financing met at the World Bank to prepare submissions for the Coordinating Board meeting to be held in February. The outcomes of the meeting were: 1. Agreement on revisions and finalisation plan for the Coordinating Board document Next Steps for Resource Mobilisation; 2. Update on activities and action points to carry forward the Stop TB Partnership finance objectives identified in the July 2001 planning meeting; 3. Clarification of options for partnership financing mechanisms; and 4. Agreement on the role of Stop TB with respect to the GFATM and action points for next steps.

Further information is available from the Stop TB Partnership Secretariat at stoptbinfo@who.int.

 

World TB Day 2002 is 37 working days away! The proposed theme for World TB Day 2002 is "Stop TB, fight poverty". The theme suggests that tackling TB, one of several illnesses that affect the poor, is one way of achieving greater global prosperity. "Stop TB, fight poverty": a yearlong campaign. Unlike previous years, a sustained campaign emphasizing this year’s theme is envisioned. Stop TB partners are encouraged to develop year-round activities and stress the targets for case detection and cures, as this indicates both that the global partnership has a plan and that massive expansion of DOTS is necessary to achieve the targets. Over the year 2002 the Stop TB Partnership is developing a Countdown Campaign towards 2005 in support of reaching the global targets to stop TB. "Stop TB, fight poverty", World TB Day 2002 is the first event marking the countdown.

More information and background material will be posted on the Website:

/events/world_tb_day/2002/default.asp

We would like to hear of your events and plans mailto:stoptbinfo@who.int

 

The Stop TB Partnership Secretariat is welcoming secondments from Stop TB partner organizations. The team in Geneva needs to be strengthened with expertise in communications & advocacy, information management and resource mobilization. We are currently advertising for two full time staff members, an Information Manager and a Resource Mobilisation Manager.

Further information is available from the Stop TB Partnership Secretariat at stoptbinfo@who.int.

 

Global Working Group on TB among HIV-infected people /wg/TB_HIV/

In order to facilitate the ways in which the Global Working Group on TB/HIV operates, Dr Elzinga (Working Group chair) is constituting a core group, following a call for nominations. Membership of this core group reflects the need for representation from national TB and HIV programmes in high TB/HIV burden countries, technical experts, development agencies, and national and international NGOs. The final membership of the core group will appear in the next communique. One of the tasks of the core group will be to facilitate the development of the Working Group workplan and budget, which provides members of the Working Group the opportunity to indicate their technical and financial contributions to the overall activities of the Working Group.

The WHO secretariat of the Working Group is co-ordinating the production of guidelines for phased implementation of collaborative TB and HIV programme activities, useful for countries faced by a high burden of TB/HIV. The first draft of the guidelines is nearing completion and will then undergo review by the Technical Panel of the Working Group. Please address any enquiries to Dr Fabio Scano, Stop TB Department, WHO Geneva (scanof@who.ch).

Preparations are well under way for a workshop to develop proposals for implementation of collaborative TB and HIV programme activities in priority countries. The workshop, co-ordinated by WHO in collaboration with the USA Centers for Disease Control and USAID, will take place in Nairobi, Kenya, from 11-15 February. Please address any enquiries to Dr Philip Onyebujoh, Stop TB Department, WHO Geneva (onyebujohpf@who.ch) or Dr Eugene Nyarko, WHO Africa Regional Office, Harare, Zimbabwe (nyarkoe@whoafr.org).

DOTS Expansion Working Group

/wg/DOTS_Expansion/default.asp

Interagency Coordinating Committee focusing on Tuberculosis, Copenhagen, Denmark, 22 - 23 January 2002

The main objectives of the meeting are to:

1. Endorse the DOTS Expansion Plan to Stop TB in Europe, 2002-2006, which will be launched on World TB Day 2002

2. Review the current HIV/AIDS situation globally and in particular in the WHO European Region, and discuss future steps to strengthen TB and HIV/AIDS collaboration.

Human, technical and financial resources for DOTS expansion, and solutions for mobilizing funds in order to address these gaps, will be shared with participating partner organizations and donors, including representatives of the Governments of Denmark, Finland, France, Sweden, UK and USA, and the following partner organizations: Danish Lung Health Association, IUATLD, LHL, MERLIN, KNCV, CDC, MSH, OSI, PIH, Task Force on Communicable Disease Control/Baltic Sea Region, UNDP, UNICEF and IFRC.

 

DOTS Plus Working Group
/wg/mdrtb/

1. Meeting of the STOP TB Working Group on DOTS-Plus for MDR-TB

The next meeting of the Working Group will take place in Tallin, Estonia, 10-12 April 2002 at the Radisson SAS Hotel. Estonia National TB Control Programme (NTP) will kindly host the meeting. Topics for discussion will include progress of the GLC-approved DOTS-Plus pilot projects, prospects for the future linkage/convergence of GLC and the Global TB Drug Facility (GDF), global monitoring of pilot projects, fitness of drug-resistant M. tuberculosis strains, proficiency testing of second-line drugs, a training session for developing applications to the GLC, administrative issues, and site visits of the Estonia NTP. A block of 150 rooms has been set aside at the Radisson SAS Hotel at the special price about 88 US$ inclusive of breakfast. Lunch and dinner will be provided. For registration to the meeting and hotel reservation please contact Ms Evelyn Silvet at Frens Conference Services in Tallin, Estonia (e-mail: conference@frens.ee telephone: 372 69 79 290). Formal letters of invitation will be available and sent shortly to last year’s participants, and interested others. For any other information please contact the DOTS-Plus team at WHO headquarters (dotsplus@who.int) in Geneva, Switzerland, or Dr Kai Vink (kai.Vink@kliinikum.ee) programme manager of the tuberculosis control program of Estonia.

2. Expansion and Structure of the DOTS-Plus team at WHO HQ in Geneva

The DOTS-Plus team in Geneva has expanded to address the many issues related to MDR-TB. Under the guidance of Dr JW Lee, Director Stop TB, and Dr Mario Raviglione, Coordinator Tuberculosis Strategy and Operations, the team is now composed of 5 staff. Dr Marcos Espinal is the overall coordinator of the DOTS-Plus project and focal point for tuberculosis activities in the Americas and the Russian Federation. Working with Dr Espinal are Dr. Ernesto Jaramillo who is the focal point for all Green Light Committee activities including procurement of second-line drugs, Dr. Malgosia Grzemska is the WHO representative on the Green Light Committee and is also the focal point for tuberculosis activities in Europe, Mr. Rajesh Gupta who is the focal point for research activities and the WHO alternative representative on the Green Light Committee, and Ms Corazon Dolores who is the assistant for secretarial support to the DOTS-Plus team.

Working Group/Global Alliance for TB Drug Development

1. International Symposium on Current Developments on Drug Discovery for Tuberculosis, January 14-17, 2002: The Global Alliance for TB Drug Development and WHO’s Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases co-hosted with AstraZeneca an International Symposium on Current Developments on Drug Discovery for Tuberculosis. This symposium was organized by AstraZeneca India in Bengalore and was attended by many members of the working group.
hhtp:/www.astrazenecaindia.com

Further information is available from StopTBDrugWG@tballiance.org

2. Stakeholders Meeting at the 4th World Congress on Tuberculosis in June. The annual meeting of the Global Alliance for TB Drug Development Stakeholders Association will take place in Washington DC, around the 4th World Congress on Tuberculosis. Further details to come.

Further information is available from joelle.tanguy@tballiance.org

 

2. CALENDAR OF EVENTS
/events/archive.asp

The 4th World Congress on Tuberculosis (TB) will be held at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C, U.S.A. on June 3-5, 2002. This meeting will evaluate the state of the global TB epidemic since the last Tuberculosis World Congress in 1992, review the status of TB research and identify research gaps.

Topics covered will include fundamental, translational and operational research. This meeting is for global TB control officials, TB researchers, health systems services researchers, policymakers and funders, as well as infectious disease and pulmonary physicians.

Abstract for poster presentation due: March 1, 2002

Hotel, abstract and meeting details: www.niaid.nih.gov/dmid/tuberculosis/tbcongress

 

2003

The Stop TB Communiqué is issued monthly by email to global partners in order to share information on progress in the global partnership movement to stop TB. Partners are invited to submit news items, progress updates, comments and suggestions to reynoldsk@who.org. Stop TB Partnership Secretariat, World Health Organization, 20 avenue Appia, CH-1211 Geneva 27. Visit the Stop TB website at www.stoptb.org. The site is sponsored by the American Lung Association www.lungusa.org. Stop TB is a partnership hosted by the World Health Organization www.who.int.

Throughout the Stop TB Communiqué, "DOTS" is used as a brand name in its broadest sense as an umbrella term for all DOTS-based strategies, including DOTS-Plus for MDR-TB and expanded strategies to address TB/HIV.

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