Panel 2.14: contribution of non-governmental actors.

This is a summary of the presentations and discussion of Panel 2.14, Contribution of Non-Governmental Actors, of the Conference, Health Aspects of the Tsunami Disaster in Asia, convened by the World Health Organization (WHO) in Phuket, Thailand, 04-06 May 2005. The topics discussed included issues related to the role of media and communication as pertaining to the responses to the damage created by the Tsunami. It is presented in six sections: (1) Background; (2) Key questions; (3) Discussion; (4) What have we learned?; (5) Conclusions; and (6) Recommendations. The what have we learned section is presented in the categories of: (1) needs assessments; (2) coordination; (3) filling gaps; and (4) capacity building.

Cross-sectional survey of malaria prevalence in tsunami-affected districts of Aceh Province, Indonesia.

BACKGROUND: Malaria is endemic to Indonesia. However, there are few prevalence data available from Aceh Province because of the long-standing separatist conflict and decentralization of the public health system. The Mentor Initiative, which specializes in malaria control in humanitarian emergencies, was one of the non-governmental organizations to respond to the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami in Aceh. Data on malaria prevalence were gathered to guide and evaluate programmatic efforts. FINDINGS: The Mentor Initiative conducted community-based malaria prevalence surveys in 2005 and 2006 in five districts along the tsunami-affected western coastline. A total of 11,763 individuals in 3,771 households were tested. The overall slide positivity rate in 2005 and 2006 for all Plasmodium species was 2.1% (n = 252, 95% CI 1.9%-2.4%). Slide positivity rates ranged from 0 to 55% among villages. Overall, 57% of the 252 cases were infected with P. falciparum (n = 144, 95% CI 51.0%-63.3%), and 40.1% were infected with P. vivax (n = 101, 95% CI 34.0%-46.1%), with 0.03% (n = 7, 95% CI 0.8%-4.8%) being mixed infections. Males were significantly more likely to be affected than females (2.8% vs 1.5%, p < 0.01). Infection was more common in those over the age of 5 (2.3% vs. 0.6%, p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Local prevalence data are needed to design effective community-based malaria control programs, as endemicity varies greatly within districts. Certain villages were found to be hyperendemic, with slide positivity rates far higher than average in Indonesia. There is a need for ongoing malaria surveillance in Aceh Province to monitor prevention and treatment efforts.