April 2010, Government of India, New Delhi05.05.10 - 13:48
     

National survey now in the role-out phase

Meanwhile, the broad prevalence survey on leprosy and leprosy-induced disabilities in India seems to have entered the operational stage. While still covering the theme of stigma and discrimination, the scale was increased, now including more than 24 million people.

In preparing this survey there was obviously no need for external support, neither in terms of increasing the number of pilot surveys for methodology testing nor in broadening the base of technical experts to a global extent. As the methodological challenges of such surveys are inevitably very high, it is to hope that In the phase of interpreting the results a fruitful debate amongst leprosy experts will develop globally, making the learnings valuable also to other countries in fighting for a world free of leprosy. Therefore the idea of this website remains valid.

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→ Who owns this website?

This website is maintained by the Novartis Foundation for Sustainable Development. Inspired by debates at the 2008 Leprosy Congress a new theme was started: promote surveys which help improve the efficacy of hands-on leprosy control worldwide.

As there are trendier topics than a leprosy-free world it is crucial to link up existing or emerging efforts. The Foundation is prepared to play this facilitation role and will also be able to add some missing elements.

In this spirit this website is owned by everybody who wants to contribute to innovative leprosy control studies.

Connecting leprosy control surveys in a global perspective

→ How can you contribute?

Just let others in the field know about your survey projects and ideas – by using the comment function or by emailing content to be included. Or contact us to point at missing pieces in the jigsaw of know-how on fighting leprosy successfully.

Improvements start with information

→ What is a successful study?

First and foremost this is an open question which this website wants to help be discussed. However, in broad terms it seems to be clear that creating new insights and empirical knowledge is a success if it leads to an earlier detection (and treatment) of leprosy cases. Studies merely with a medical / epidemiological focus might be blind to opportunities of influencing health system or patient related parameters, being revealed by approaches which are based on social sciences, too.

focus on earlier case detection