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| Growing impact of Red Cross and Red Crescent primary health care programmes highlighted at the Global Health and Care Forum 2008 14 May 2008 The growing impact of long term health programmes implemented by Red Cross and Red Crescent volunteers and the necessity to further increase access to primary health care are the main themes discussed during the three-day Global Health and Care Forum 2008. The conference opened today at the Secretariat of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Geneva. More than 120 Red Cross and Red Crescent health delegates from all over the world are attending, as well as several representatives of ministries of Health. “I appreciate the enormous capacity embodied in the International Federation, with its global workforce of almost 100 million people This is a workforce uniquely well-placed to penetrate inaccessible areas under the most challenging conditions,“ said Dr Margaret Chan, director general of the World Health Organization who gave the keynote speech. A joint Letter of Cooperation was signed in 2005 between the International Federation and the World Health Organization. A Memorandum of Understanding further increasing cooperation will be signed with the World Health Organization regional office for Europe on Friday. According to a survey released on the first day of the Forum, long term community-based programmes supported by the International Federation make a significant contribution to better health conditions. Some of the findings include: - Water and sanitation: programmes are implemented in over 40 countries, serving 6.5 million people with emergency water and sanitation and 2.5 million people in long-term development projects. - HIV: in southern Africa alone, 10 Red Cross Societies involving more than 7,700 trained volunteers are implementing home-based care programmes supporting more than 68,000 people living with HIV and nearly 120,000 children orphaned due to AIDS in 143 sites. This effort is part of a massive scaling up of Red Cross Red Crescent HIV activities throughout the world. - Tuberculosis: over 12,000 volunteers worldwide are supporting more than 50,000 people, including over 10,000 also living with HIV. The average treatment success rate is over 75 per cent. - Malaria: there was a 23 per cent increase in the use of insecticide-treated bednets in Sierra Leone every time a volunteer paid a single visit to a household in 2006. More than 12 million bednets have been distributed with other partners since 2002 in Africa, Asia and the Americas, saving more than 255,000 lives. - Measles: some 7.8 million Swiss francs (US$ 7.4 million / € 4.8 million) have been spent since 2000 to carry out over 50 measles vaccination campaigns involving 80,000 volunteers worldwide, contributing to the reduction of mortality from measles by 91% in Africa between 2000 and 2006. - Polio: some 4 million Swiss francs (US$ 3.8 million / € 2.5 million) have been spent since 2000 for social mobilization activities in more than 75 immunization campaigns in 31 countries involving 75,000 volunteers worldwide. - First aid: in Europe alone, the International Federation trains more than 3 million people every year. Thirty years after the Declaration of Alma Ata which marked a watershed in development by defining health as a key entry point to reduce inequality in access to basic health needs, a lot still needs to be achieved at the community level. “We have the feeling that sometimes governments are not exploring ways in which volunteers can best contribute to primary healthcare programmes despite their unrivalled knowledge of the communities they serve,” said Markku Niskala, secretary general of the International Federation. “The figures released in the survey clearly show the growing impact of our programmes and the necessity to further increase community-based healthcare,” concludes Dr Bruce Eshaya-Chauvin, Head of the International Federation Health and Care Department in Geneva. For further information, or to set up interviews, please contact: Jean-Luc Martinage, Media Officer Tel: + 41 22 730 42 96 / + 41 79 217 33 86 Media Unit Duty phone Tel: + 41 79 416 38 81 The Geneva-based International Federation promotes the humanitarian activities of 186 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies among vulnerable people. By coordinating international disaster relief and encouraging development support, it seeks to prevent and alleviate human suffering. The Federation, National Societies and the International Committee of the Red Cross together, constitute the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. © International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies |
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